Delhi HC has no jurisdiction over water sharing row with Delhi: Haryana govt

New Delhi: The Haryana government has claimed that the Delhi High Court does not have the jurisdiction to decide on its dispute with Delhi over sharing of the water from river Yamuna.

Haryana has contended that the Upper River Yamuna Board (URYB) is the appropriate body to decide the water sharing dispute between the two states and has urged the high court to decide the jurisdiction issue on "priority" basis.

It has also contended that the high court "has failed in its duty to decide the issue of jurisdiction before proceeding further in the matter".

The submissions by the state were made in an affidavit filed in a PIL by lawyer S B Tripathi seeking sufficient water supply for Delhi.

In its reply filed before a bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar, the state of Haryana has also objected to the findings of a court-appointed committee which was set up to inspect whether 'bunds' have been put in the canals carrying water meant for Delhi.

The state government has urged the court to reject the committee's report which found that large scale mining was going on in the river bed of Yamuna and the Haryana government had not disclosed any information regarding the activity.

The committee had also said that the mining activity was not obstructing the flow of water, but was also causing environmental pollution.

Haryana has contended that the report was filed after a single inspection and without consulting it.

The high court had set up the committee on DJB's application claiming that bunds had been built in canals supplying water to Delhi and this was affecting the water requirements of the national capital.

Apart from the committee's report, the neighbouring state has also opposed the Delhi Jal Board's (DJB) applications raising apprehensions of water shortage in the national capital during the lean season.

Haryana has claimed that the flow of water in Yamuna was excellent throughout the lean season which ended on June 30.

Moreover, Delhi was receiving double or more of its raw water requirement and bunds had not impacted the water flow to the national capital, it added.

Haryana also claimed that DJB was unnecessarily raising the apprehension of water shortage in the national capital and was using the PIL to get the water distribution issue decided by the high court when it does not have the jurisdiction to do so.

The state government has also objected to DJB monitoring the flow of water in the river Yamuna.

It has said that its Irrigation Department has "gauge systems" in place at various points in the river and accurate discharge data was being maintained.