The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear on Monday Karnataka's plea to stay its September 28 order to the state to release 9,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu from the Cauvery river basin.
A bench headed by Justice DK Jain directed listing of the Karnataka's fresh plea for stay of the court's order in the mentioning list of Monday after senior counsel SS Javali, appearing for the state, sought early hearing of the matter. Karnataka has pleaded it would be unable to comply with the apex court's directive due to the decline in the water level as otherwise it would adversely affect its own irrigation and drinking water needs.
A bench of justices Jain and Madan Lokur, while directing release of the water on September 28, had pulled up the Karnataka government for failing to comply with the Cauvery River Authority's (CRA) directive to release 9,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu. The bench had warned Karnataka that if it failed to comply with the CRA directive, it (the bench) will have to pass appropriate orders.