Bengaluru, July 28 — Senior BJP leader and Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R. Ashoka on Tuesday accused the Congress government of failing to protect the state's interests in the Cauvery water dispute and urged Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar to immediately challenge the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee's (CWRC) recommendation to release water to Tamil Nadu.
In a statement, the senior BJP leader alleged that despite Karnataka facing a severe drought and acute water scarcity, the state government had once again agreed to release 3,500 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu.
Ashoka criticised the Congress government for what he termed its inability to effectively present Karnataka's case before the Cauvery authorities and claimed that the state's reservoirs were already under stress due to deficient rainfall.
"Despite repeated warnings to be prepared with strong arguments to defend Karnataka's interests, the government has failed to act in time. Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar and Water Resources Minister Ramalinga Reddy are about to take actions that could further reduce the amount of water available in the Cauvery River system, which would negatively affect the people of Karnataka, he underlined.
The BJP leader alleged that earlier decisions taken by the Congress government had contributed to the depletion of water levels in Karnataka's reservoirs, leaving citizens struggling for drinking water.
He further claimed that any decision to release Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu amid the ongoing water crisis could trigger widespread public protests across the state.
Ashoka urged the Chief Minister to convene an immediate meeting of officials and legal experts and file an appeal against the CWRC's recommendation before the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA).
"The state government has a responsibility to present Karnataka's ground realities with proper data before the Cauvery Water Management Authority and safeguard the interests of Kannadigas. The government must ensure that past mistakes are not repeated and take all necessary steps to protect the state's water resources," he said.
Karnataka is currently grappling with a severe monsoon deficit, with reservoir levels across the Cauvery basin remaining critically low. The CWRC has recommended that the state release 3,500 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu every day for 15 days, a move that has sparked political debate.
Karnataka Water Resources Minister Ramalinga Reddy said the state government would take a decision on the CWRC direction to release water to Tamil Nadu only after consultations with Chief Minister Shivakumar. Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Reddy said the CWRC had directed Karnataka to release 3,500 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu for 15 days following a meeting of the Cauvery authorities.