HC Says Punjab Should've Complied With Its Order

Court Said It Would Issue Contempt Notices To The Punjab Director General Of Police And The Chief Secretary

- Surender Sharma

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday said Punjab should have complied with its May 6 order directing the release of additional water to Haryana from the Nangal dam.

"As long as the order stands, it should have been complied with," the bench of chief justice Sheel Nagu and justice Sumeet Goel declared, while saying that it was inclined to order notices of contempt against Punjab's director general of police and chief secretary.

The court was hearing an application moved by a Haryana Panchayat demanding the initiation of contempt proceedings against Punjab for not complying with the high court's order on the release of water.

An April 28 demand by Haryana for an additional 4500 cusecs of water from the Bhakra dam snowballed into a stand-off as Punjab refused to accept the decision and deployed police at the Nangal dam, 13km downstream from Bhakra, to stop the additional water release.