JD(S) warns of state-wide protests on Cauvery issue

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: The JD(S) has warned the State government that they would launch state-wide protests against the decision to share Cauvery river water with Tamil Nadu even as Karnataka faced a drought-like situation.

The Congress government’s hand has been forced by the orders of the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) and the Supreme Court (SC).

Tamil Nadu had initially demanded 24,000 thousand million cubic feet (TMCFT) of water to be released.

However, the CWMA downgraded that to 5,000 TMCFT but the State government has been challenging the same. The regional outfit’s leaders spoke of the plan to conduct state-wide protests on the issue in the first meeting the party conducted since JD(S) legislature party leader HD Kumaraswamy was discharged last week.

It is to be noted that the likes of Chamundeshwari MLA GT Deve Gowda and former MLA CS Puttaraju have already participated in demonstrations on the issue in Mandya.

Congress ally and Melukote MLA Darshan Puttanaiah has also joined in the protests led by farmer leaders. The JD(S) meeting was also attended by the party’s national president HD Deve Gowda, party state president CM Ibrahim and other leaders.

They also discussed the regional outfit’s Sunday convention in Bengaluru, which would be followed by a state-wide tour.