Punjab compromised its interests on sharing water at Kejriwal’s instance: Akali Dal

Chandigarh, Oct 12 (IANS) The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) said on Thursday that after compromising the interests of Punjab in the Supreme Court at Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor Arvind Kejriwal’s instance, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is now teaming up with the Congress to facilitate successful conduct of a central survey to release Ravi-Beas water to Haryana through the SYL canal.

SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema told the media here that the AAP government seems to have forgotten all historic injustices meted out to Punjab by the Congress, be it giving away of half of its river water to Rajasthan in 1955 to further division of another half of the remaining water to Haryana, and the decision to create and inaugurate digging of the SYL in 1981 and 1982, respectively.

“Instead of mentioning these injustices as well as telling Punjabis why it had failed to defend the state’s case in the Supreme Court, the AAP government has started a vilification campaign against SAD. This is not in the interest of the state as it is tantamount to playing into the hands of anti-Punjab parties who want to rob us of our river waters,” Cheema said.

The SAD leader also decried AAP for using a one-page document of former Haryana Chief Minister Devi Lal’s speech in the Vidhan Sabha to defame the SAD.

He said the speech, which was delivered for the consumption of Haryana legislators, only talked about the Punjab government’s intention to acquire land in three villages under Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act.

“The AAP government has forgotten that the SYL was built over a 122-km span and that administrative approval for it was given by Giani Zail Singh in 1977 and Rs 1 crore was also received by the Zail Singh government from Haryana during that period,” Cheema said.

He said despite such state of affairs after assuming power in 1978, then Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal challenged Section 78 of the Punjab Reorganization Act which gave power to the Centre to allocate river waters between Punjab and Haryana.

“Badal Sahab also did not allow the SYL canal to be constructed during his period as Chief Minister. He also launched a morcha to stop construction of the SYL at Kapuri village after former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi inaugurated work on the project in 1982. All this is part of record and makes it clear that Badal was the real defender of the river waters of the state,” Cheema said.

Asking the AAP government not to do politics on such a sensitive issue, Cheema said Punjabis were perturbed that AAP actually stood for the construction of the SYL canal and release of Punjab’s waters to Haryana.

"AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal has made this clear ample times,” Cheema said, adding that AAP has also given a guarantee in Haryana that it would ensure water from the SYL reaches each and every corner of the state in case the party comes to power in Haryana in 2024.