Petition to declare Indus-Waters treaty with Pak illegal rejected by SC
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a public interest litigation seeking declaration of the Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan as illegal and unconstitutional. "This treaty is of 1960 and this treaty has held good for more than half a century," a bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar said while dismissing the PIL filed by lawyer M L Sharma in his personal capacity.
During the hearing, it was argued that the Indus water pact was not a treaty at all as the same was not signed in the name of the President of India.
"It was a tripartite agreement between three leaders and void ab initio (illegal at the outset) and hence cannot be acted upon," the lawyer said.
The
court
said
that
it
has
perused
the
entire
petition
and
does
not
wish
to
agree
with
it.
The
Indus
water
agreement
was
executed
on
September
19,
1960
between
India,
Pakistan
and
the
International
Bank
for
Reconstruction
and
Development
or
the
World
Bank.
Besides
Nehru,
the
then
Pakistan
President
Mohammad
Ayub
Khan
and
W
A
B
Iliff
for
the
World
Bank
were
its
signatories.
The apex court had last year refused to grant an urgent hearing on the PIL, saying there was no urgency in the matter while Mr. Sharma, who filed the PIL in his personal capacity on the issue, to "keep politics aside".
Mr. Sharma, in his PIL, had referred to Article 77 of the Constitution and said it mandates that all executive action of the government shall be expressed to be taken in the name of the President.
PTI