Cauvery dispute: Shivakumar urges Centre to intervene, bail out K’taka

BENGALURU: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar said on Tuesday that the state is in a fix following the order to release the water to Tamil Nadu, and urged the Centre to intervene.

Speaking to reporters at his residence, Shivakumar stated, “We are in a catch-22 situation. We do not have water and still we have to respect the decision of the authorities. But, we are appealing before the Supreme Court and I am leaving for New Delhi.”

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“I will meet the Parliament members, we will also take a delegation to the Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekawat and we are also seeking time to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Shivakumar stated.

“We will plead with them to help us out and bail us out. There is no inflow to the dams, we are finding it very difficult and the central government has to help us out. The BJP should join us to save Karnataka,” he urged.

Shivakumar stated, “We will consider the suggestion by former CM Basavaraj Bommai regarding the Cauvery dispute. He had suggested to stop the water and pursue the legal battle. We are going to court the day after tomorrow. We do not want to release the water, at the same time we need to keep the order of the court in mind.”

“I am leaving for Delhi and meeting all MPs. We will pressurize the central government to intervene. When the court had given an order to release the water, what was the option before me or Bommai? To safeguard the interest of the state, we need to cooperate. The existing situation would be brought to the notice of the Supreme Court,” Shivakumar explained.

“Let Bommai demand Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene by sidelining the politics. We will consider Former PM H.D. Deve Gowda’s proposal to go for the out of the court settlement,” he stated.