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Goa Opposition party to write to PM for “justice” in Mahadayi dispute

Last Updated 09 March 2020, 14:31 IST

Questioning Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s resolve to protect Goa’s interest in the ongoing inter-state dispute with Karnataka over the waters of the Mahadayi river, a senior opposition MLA and an MGP MLA on Monday, maintained that his party would knock on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s doors to plead for his intervention in the contentious issue.

Former Deputy Chief Minister Sudin Dhavalikar also told reporters at a press conference in Panaji, that Sawant’s meeting with Union Minister for Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawat was merely an eye-wash and an “election stunt” ahead of the March 22 Zilla Panchayat polls.

“The Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party will write a letter to the Prime Minister bringing all the issues related to the Mhadei case to his notice. The letter will be delivered to PMO by March 15,” Dhavalikar told reporters, adding that Sawant was incapable of tackling the issue and protecting Goa’s interest in the two-decade long inter-state dispute and hoped that Modi would deliver “justice to Goa”.

“The Chief Minister’s meeting with Union Jal Shakti Minister (Gajendra Singh) Shekhawat is only an election stunt by the CM, keeping in mind the Zilla Panchayat polls. Sawant does not want to resolve the issue, but just fool the voters ahead of the elections for petty gain,” Dhavalikar also said.

Zilla Panchayat elections are scheduled to be held on March 22.

The Sawant-led dispensation has come under severe criticism from all opposition parties, for not doing enough to protect Goa’s interest in the ongoing inter-state dispute with Karnataka over the waters of the Mahadayi (known as Mhadei in Goa) river.

Goa and Karnataka two states are already battling out a two decade-long dispute over the sharing of the Mahadayi river in the Supreme Court, after both parties expressed reservations about the award by the Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal in 2018. Goa has also opposed the diversion of water from the Mahadayi river basin through the Kalasa-Bhandura project claiming it would cause “ecological devastation” in Goa.

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(Published 09 March 2020, 14:14 IST)

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