Palaniswami slams Karnataka government on Mekedatu issue; questions DMK's 'silence'

Chennai: AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Saturday attacked the ruling Congress in Karnataka for announcing its decision to go ahead with the Mekedatu reservoir and hit out at the DMK government's alleged silence over the issue.

The Karnataka government envisages constructing a balancing reservoir across river Cauvery at Mekedatu in that state to meet Bengaluru's drinking water needs, but Tamil Nadu has been opposing it saying the project would harm its interests.

Palaniswami, Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly alleged that DMK, along with its ally Congress, has been working against Tamil Nadu's interests ever since it came to power in 2021.

He said he had already raised in the state Assembly, the previous AIADMK government filing a contempt plea in the Supreme Court against the chief of the Cauvery Water Management Authority for taking up the Mekedatu issue in the CWMA agenda in 2018.

That case was pending before the SC.

However, the Mekedatu issue again came up before a CWMA meeting earlier this month, but TN did not walkout in protest against it, he said in a statement.

In this background, the Karnataka government has announced going ahead with the project, while presenting its budget on Friday, the LoP said.

He recalled that the neighbouring had announced that a separate project division and two sub-divisions have already been set up to implement the ambitious project, besides initiating a survey to identify land that will be submerged under this project. Besides, counting of trees has also been taken up.

"This is against the Supreme Court verdict and amounts to contempt of court," he added.

"People really don't know what the DMK government is waiting for. (Former chief minister M) Karunanidhi did not extend the agreement on Cauvery and allowed dams across the river in Karnataka, thus betraying the people of Tamil Nadu," he said.

He charged Stalin with "betraying" the people of the state on the current issue.

Cauvery serves as the source of drinking water in Tamil Nadu's 20 districts and if the Mekedatu project is allowed, they will be affected. The delta districts will turn into a "desert," he added.

The former CM said that whenever the BJP or Congress governments in Karnataka acted against Tamil Nadu on the Cauvery dispute, the "Amma government" of the AIADMK had resisted and prevented them politically and legally.

He demanded immediate withdrawal of the plans to implement the Mekedatu project.

He warned of a massive protest, involving people and farmers, by his party against the Congress government in Karnataka and the central and TN governments "that are mute witnesses" to the former's betrayal of Tamil Nadu if the project was not shelved immediately.