‘Nehru’s blunder’: PM Modi targets Congress over Indus Water Treaty, sends stern signal to Pakistan

PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked the previous Congress governments over the Indus Water Treaty (IWT), saying it was a big betrayal to the country.

Speaking during a discussion on Operation Sindoor in Lok Sabha, the Prime Minister said that the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru agreed to give 80% of India’s water to Pakistan.

“It has been a long-standing habit of the Congress to mortgage India's interests. The biggest example of this is the Indus Waters Treaty, signed by Pandit Nehru. Those rivers are part of India’s civilisational identity, our very roots are connected to them,” the Prime Minister said.

He further stated the treaty was a big betrayal for India as the country was left with only 20% of the Indus River system.

“Can anyone explain the mindset behind such a decision? We were left with only 20% of the Indus River system. They gave 80% to a country that openly calls itself India’s enemy…,” he added.

The Prime Minister further stated that the then government gave authority to World Bank to decide on Indus and its waters.

He said that the mistake made under former PM Jawaharlal Nehru has been corrected by putting the treaty in abeyance as he reiterated that blood and water cannot flow together. “The major blunder committed by Nehru ji — the Indus Water Treaty — has been put in abeyance by India in the interest of the nation and our farmers,” he said.

The IWT was signed in 1960 to settle a long-standing dispute between India and Pakistan regarding the use of waters from the Indus River system, a crucial lifeline for both countries, particularly Pakistan. Mediated by the World Bank, the treaty aimed at establishing an equitable way to share the river’s resources.

The treaty allocated the western rivers (Indus, Jhelum, Chenab) to Pakistan and the eastern rivers (Ravi, Beas, Sutlej) to India. While each country had exclusive rights over its allocated rivers, the treaty did permit certain uses of the water by the other side.

Under the agreement, India was allowed to use 20 percent of the water from the Indus river system, while the remaining 80 percent is allocated to Pakistan.

After the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, the treaty was put in abeyance.