The North News
Chandigarh, May 6
Punjab Cabinet Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) state president Aman Arora launched a blistering attack on the BJP-led central government and the Haryana administration on Monday, accusing them of decades-long exploitation of Punjab’s water rights. Speaking during a special session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Arora described the state’s plight as akin to having “a knee on Punjab’s neck.”
Tracing what he called a “historic injustice” dating back to 1955, Arora said Punjab has been systematically stripped of its river waters through a series of political decisions and agreements that ignored riparian principles. He cited the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty — which diverted 80% of Punjab’s river water to Pakistan — as the beginning of a long pattern of marginalisation.
“This betrayal continued with the Punjab Reorganisation Act of 1966, the Tripartite Agreement of 1981, and manipulated assessments that served only to benefit non-riparian states like Haryana and Rajasthan,” he said. “Congress and BJP alike have treated Punjab as a resource well to be looted.”
Despite being a riparian state, Punjab has been forced to share its waters with states that legally have no claim, Arora argued. He said the water assessment for Punjab was inexplicably increased from 15.85 MAF in 1955 to 17.17 MAF in 1981 to accommodate additional allocations to Haryana and Rajasthan.
Arora also levelled criticism at the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), accusing it of weakening Punjab’s stand during a crucial period. He cited the Badal-led government’s decision in 1978 to demand Rs 3 crore for the construction of the controversial Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, and its acceptance of Rs 1 crore from Haryana in 1979 for the same project. “They signed away Punjab’s rights and future,” he said, referring to the SAD’s acceptance of the 1981 Tripartite Agreement.
The minister praised Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for taking a firm stance against releasing additional water to Haryana. “Punjab has no surplus water to offer,” Arora declared. “We will not bow to Delhi or Haryana.”
He called for the immediate annulment of what he described as unjust and outdated water-sharing arrangements, and a return to riparian principles in determining water distribution. “If Rajasthan can be denied Narmada waters for not being a basin state, why must Punjab bleed for others?” he asked.
