Cauvery water row: K'taka to release 12K cusecs per day to TN

Asking both the states to ensure that "law and order" prevails, the Supreme Court today modified its earlier order on sharing of Cauvery water, directing Karnataka to release 12,000 cusecs instead of 15,000 cusecs per day till September 20 to Tamil Nadu.

Rejecting Karnataka's plea seeking placing in abeyance for a week its earlier order, the court asked the Executives to ensure compliance.

The apex court bench, which sat on a holiday, was critical of the language used in the fresh plea of Karnataka seeking to keep in abeyance the September 5 order asking it to release 15,000 cusecs water per day to Tamil Nadu.

"In the affidavit of urgency in support of taking up of the application for hearing, if we allow ourselves to say so, is absolutely disturbing and to say the least, totally deprecable...That apart, the application for modification contains certain averments which follow the tenor of similar language which cannot be conceived of to be filed in a court of law, seeking modification of an order.

"Agitation in spontaneity or propelled by some motivation or galvanized by any kind of catalystic component, can never form the foundation for seeking modification of an order," a bench of Justices Dipak Misra and U U Lalit said, adding the Executive cannot take the plea of "law and order" for not obeying the judicial order unless it is modified.

The citizens cannot become "law unto themselves", it said.

"We are inclined to modify the order dated 5th September, 2016, to the extent that the State of Karnataka shall release 12000 cusecs of water per day and the said direction, shall remain in force till 20th September, 2016.

"We expect the inhabitants of states, namely, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, shall behave regard being had to the respect for law and order and the Executive of both the states are under constitutional obligation to see that the law and order prevails," it said and fixed the plea for hearing on September 20 after the supervisory committee adjudicates it.

It said there was no room for non-compliance unless the order is modified.

"Concept of deviancy has no room; and disobedience has no space. The citizens cannot become law unto themselves. When a court of law passes an order, it is the sacred duty of the citizens to obey the same. If there is any grievance, they are obligated under the law to take recourse to permissible legal remedies. The tenor of application filed by Karnataka does not reflect so, but, on the contrary, demonstrates otherwise. We decry it," it said.