SC likely to hear Haryana's plea on SYL on Nov 21

The Supreme Court is likely to hear on November 21 a Haryana government plea seeking restoration of the court's earlier interim order for maintaining a status quo on the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal and the land acquired for the water channel.

"Let it be listed for hearing on Monday," said a bench of Justice Anil R. Dave and Justice A.M. Khanwilkar after Haryana government counsel made a mention and pleaded for urgent hearing of the state's fresh plea.

The bench was told that efforts were made by Punjab to act contrary to the court's earlier order of March 17 for the status quo and appointment of a three-member committee headed by the Union Home Secretary, and including the Punjab Chief Secretary and Director General of Police, as the receiver for the SYL Canal, land acquired for it and all equipment, including earth-moving machinery.

Haryana's plea assumes significance as the Punjab government on November 15 denotified the land acquired for constructing the SYL canal.

Earlier, Satbir Hooda had moved the apex court against Punjab's action and sought criminal contempt against Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal.

The March 17 order came after the Punjab assembly on March 14 unanimously passed a bill to return to owners the land acquired for the canal.

The top court's Constitution Bench refused to extend the March 17 interim order after giving its advisory opinion on a Presidential Reference on the constitutionality of the Punjab Termination of Water Agreements Act, 2004.

The bench, in its advisory opinion, on November 10 held as unconstitutional Punjab's 2004 law intended to deny Haryana its share in the Sutlej-Yamuna waters.

--IANS

pk/tsb/vt