A day after Union Chemicals and Fertilizer Minister Ananth Kumar said there was no proposal to set up the Cauvery Management Board, DMK President Kalaignar M Karunanidhi on June 8 said Chief Minister Jayalalitha should convene an all-party meeting on the issue of setting up of the Cauvery Management Board (CMB), in the wake of her Karnataka counterpart’s proposed meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to urge him not to constitute it citing pendency of the review petition in the Supreme Court.
In a statement, Kalaignar said that in one of her statements earlier, Jayalalitha had stated that her government was struggling for the setting up of Cauvery Management Board and Cauvery water regulatory committee, besides getting the final award of the Cauvery Tribunal published in the Central gazette.
He asked whether it was because of her regime that the final award of the tribunal was notified in the Central gazette. It might be true that it was done during her regime, but could she try to claim credit for it.
The truth was that the Judge of the Supreme Court bench questioned the Centre why the final award was still not notified and directed it to notify it in the Central gazette. This truth was admitted by Jayalalitha herself in the course of her press meet on 20.2.2013 when she said “…. what has compelled the Central government to notify the Award is the Supreme Court. So we are grateful to the Supreme Court”.
But a function was arranged in Thanjavur on 9.3.2013 to felicitate her for this and she was presented with ‘a statue of Ponnyin Selvi’. It was self-congratulatory even for which dailies spared pages after pages. “But did Tamil Nadu receive Cauvery water so far vide the Award? Did water arrive in due time last year? Was Mettur dam opened on the due date? Was Kuruvai cultivation taken up in full? Did at least drought relief properly reach affected farmers due to failure of Kuruvai crop? They said the CMB and CWRC would be set up due to Jayalalitha’s efforts, are they all set up? The truth that excepting victory function nothing else has happened”
He said at a time when there was a big question mark among farmers on taking up Kuruvai crop cultivation due to depleted storage in Mettur Dam, the Chief Minister should realise that convening of an all-party meeting was of utmost importance to discuss about the setting up of the CMB.
Kalaignar said the Chief Minister, during her recent visit to Delhi, had submitted a 64-page memorandum to the Prime Minister urging him to immediately constitute the CMB. The Prime Minister had also given an assurance to her in this regard.
Under these circumstances, media reports quoting Karnataka’s Union Minister Ananth Kumar said there was no proposal with the Centre on setting up of the CMB and that he had discussed the issue with Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharati, he pointed out.
The DMK chief said, moreover, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had opposed setting up of the CMB as the review petitions filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, against the verdict of the Cauvery River Water Disputes Tribunal was pending before the Supreme court.
Mr K Siddaramaiah had also stated that no steps should be taken to set up the CMB citing pendency of the case in the apex court, Kalaignar recalled.
Siddaramaiah would also be leading an all party delegation to meet the Prime Minister at New Delhi on June 10 to personally urge him not to set up the CMB, he pointed out.
Kalaignar said at a time when Karnataka has been giving utmost importance to the Cauvery issue by convening all-party meetings and leading a delegation to New Delhi, no such action has been initiated in Tamil Nadu.
“Jayalalithaa should at least now realise that it was utmost important to invite the leaders of all political parties and elicit their views on the issue by convening an all-party meeting,” he added.
More parties demand: Union Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Ananth Kumar’s comments that the Centre had no proposal to create the Cauvery Management Board (CMB) to oversee the implementation of the Cauvery Tribunal’s final award, evoked strong condemnation from the Opposition in Tamil Nadu on June 8.
These parties, including the DMK, urged the ADMK government to convene an all-party meeting soon to discuss the issue.
Anbumani Ramadoss, an MP of the PMK, an ally of the BJP, said the views of Kumar were “shocking.” Another Union Minister from Karnataka, Sadanand Gowda, made a similar statement, he said. Anbumani said that as per the Constitution, Union Ministers represented the entire country. “Keeping the welfare of Tamil Nadu farmers in mind, Kumar should lend his voice to the creation of the CMB,” he said. Modi’s government was indeed making efforts to resolve the issue.
CPI(M) State secretary G. Ramakrishnan also sought an all-party meeting, whereas CPI leader D. Pandian condemned Kumar’s statement.
In a statement, Kalaignar said that in one of her statements earlier, Jayalalitha had stated that her government was struggling for the setting up of Cauvery Management Board and Cauvery water regulatory committee, besides getting the final award of the Cauvery Tribunal published in the Central gazette.
He asked whether it was because of her regime that the final award of the tribunal was notified in the Central gazette. It might be true that it was done during her regime, but could she try to claim credit for it.
The truth was that the Judge of the Supreme Court bench questioned the Centre why the final award was still not notified and directed it to notify it in the Central gazette. This truth was admitted by Jayalalitha herself in the course of her press meet on 20.2.2013 when she said “…. what has compelled the Central government to notify the Award is the Supreme Court. So we are grateful to the Supreme Court”.
But a function was arranged in Thanjavur on 9.3.2013 to felicitate her for this and she was presented with ‘a statue of Ponnyin Selvi’. It was self-congratulatory even for which dailies spared pages after pages. “But did Tamil Nadu receive Cauvery water so far vide the Award? Did water arrive in due time last year? Was Mettur dam opened on the due date? Was Kuruvai cultivation taken up in full? Did at least drought relief properly reach affected farmers due to failure of Kuruvai crop? They said the CMB and CWRC would be set up due to Jayalalitha’s efforts, are they all set up? The truth that excepting victory function nothing else has happened”
He said at a time when there was a big question mark among farmers on taking up Kuruvai crop cultivation due to depleted storage in Mettur Dam, the Chief Minister should realise that convening of an all-party meeting was of utmost importance to discuss about the setting up of the CMB.
Kalaignar said the Chief Minister, during her recent visit to Delhi, had submitted a 64-page memorandum to the Prime Minister urging him to immediately constitute the CMB. The Prime Minister had also given an assurance to her in this regard.
Under these circumstances, media reports quoting Karnataka’s Union Minister Ananth Kumar said there was no proposal with the Centre on setting up of the CMB and that he had discussed the issue with Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharati, he pointed out.
The DMK chief said, moreover, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had opposed setting up of the CMB as the review petitions filed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, against the verdict of the Cauvery River Water Disputes Tribunal was pending before the Supreme court.
Mr K Siddaramaiah had also stated that no steps should be taken to set up the CMB citing pendency of the case in the apex court, Kalaignar recalled.
Siddaramaiah would also be leading an all party delegation to meet the Prime Minister at New Delhi on June 10 to personally urge him not to set up the CMB, he pointed out.
Kalaignar said at a time when Karnataka has been giving utmost importance to the Cauvery issue by convening all-party meetings and leading a delegation to New Delhi, no such action has been initiated in Tamil Nadu.
“Jayalalithaa should at least now realise that it was utmost important to invite the leaders of all political parties and elicit their views on the issue by convening an all-party meeting,” he added.
More parties demand: Union Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Ananth Kumar’s comments that the Centre had no proposal to create the Cauvery Management Board (CMB) to oversee the implementation of the Cauvery Tribunal’s final award, evoked strong condemnation from the Opposition in Tamil Nadu on June 8.
These parties, including the DMK, urged the ADMK government to convene an all-party meeting soon to discuss the issue.
Anbumani Ramadoss, an MP of the PMK, an ally of the BJP, said the views of Kumar were “shocking.” Another Union Minister from Karnataka, Sadanand Gowda, made a similar statement, he said. Anbumani said that as per the Constitution, Union Ministers represented the entire country. “Keeping the welfare of Tamil Nadu farmers in mind, Kumar should lend his voice to the creation of the CMB,” he said. Modi’s government was indeed making efforts to resolve the issue.
CPI(M) State secretary G. Ramakrishnan also sought an all-party meeting, whereas CPI leader D. Pandian condemned Kumar’s statement.
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