Kishanganga: Pak to move International Court

Pakistan has acted on its threat to move the International Court of Arbitration seeking a legal interpretation of the 1960 Indus Water Treaty...

Pakistan has acted on its threat to move the International Court of Arbitration seeking a legal interpretation of the 1960 Indus Water Treaty over the 330 MW Kishanganga project in Jammu and Kashmir. The move acquires significance in view of it being the first time that either side has taken recourse to the Court of Arbitration under the Treaty.

Pakistan has reportedly appointed Jan Paulson,an international arbitration expert and Justice Simma of the International Court of Justice as its two representatives for the Court of Arbitration and asked India to appoint two arbitrators by the third week of June. This envisages a total of seven members in the Court,two each from India and Pakistan and three neutral umpires,to interpret the Treaty and Kishangangas legal standing.

The Court of Arbitration route is taken only when the issue does not pertain to a technicality and concerns the legal disputes over the interpretation of the Treaty itself.

Pakistan is learnt to have sought legal interpretation on two major parameters concerning the diversion of Kishnaganga water for the power project in Jammu and Kashmir . First,it has sought the legal interpretation of India s obligations under the provisions of the treaty that mandates India to let the water of the Western- flowing Indus Basin Rivers (Chenab,Jhelum and Indus) go to Pakistan and whether or not the Kishanganga project meets those obligations.

The move comes after Pakistan had conveyed to India last July that the Permanent Indus Commission under the Treaty had failed to resolve the differences between the two countries. This virtually binds India to appoint its representatives to the Court since not exercising this choice would imply no representation for India.

Government sources that the government is looking into the official notice given by Pakistan last week and mulling over a response which would include its legal arguments along with the names of its representatives for the arbitration.

Meanwhile,the Indus Commissioners of both countries are likely to meet next week to discuss the issues pertaining to other projects on the river basin.