Durrani says India no longer entitled to Ravi, Sutlej, Beas water

ISLAMABAD: Senior politician and former federal minister Muhammad Ali Durrani has said that following the unilateral suspension of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT), India can no longer block the water of the Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas rivers.

“India’s right to these rivers were granted solely under the Indus Water Treaty. With the treaty now suspended, India has no legal claim over their water, he emphasised in a statement on Sunday.

Former Information Minister Muhammad Ali Durrani said the suspension corrected a historic blunder committed during the martial law era of Ayub Khan that compromised Pakistan’s interests.

He said that although India had taken its environmental share from the Jhelum and Chenab rivers under the treaty, it had also unlawfully deprived Pakistan of its rightful share.

Talking about the consequences of the treaty between the two countries, he said that the drying up of the Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas rivers was a clear breach of the United Nations Convention on International Watercourses. The desiccation of these rivers, Durrani added, led to severe health problems among local populations, contamination of underground water, and the loss of essential habitat for aquatic life, birds, and wildlife, which is sheer violation of UN convention and international law.

He said that the diversion of the Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas water had triggered water crises across all provinces of the country. However, regaining control over these water could resolve canal shortages and broader water distribution issues, he said.

Durrani urged the government of Pakistan to take steps and reclaim the water of the Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas rivers.