India can't stall arbitration on water: The Hague court

ISLAMABAD: In a decisive blow to India’s efforts to derail ongoing arbitration over its hydropower projects on Western rivers, the Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled Friday that it retains full jurisdiction in the case brought by Pakistan under the Indus Waters Treaty, despite New Delhi’s April 2025 declaration to hold the treaty “in abeyance.”

In a unanimous and binding Supplemental Award, the Court rejected India’s attempt to sidestep the proceedings, stating that a party cannot unilaterally affect the Court’s competence after the dispute has already been initiated. The ruling reinforces the Court’s earlier 2023 decision on jurisdiction and ensures the continuation of arbitration over India’s run-of-river hydroelectric projects on the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab rivers—projects Pakistan claims may violate the spirit and technical terms of the 1960 World Bank-brokered treaty.

The Hague-based tribunal emphasized that India’s unilateral decision—whether deemed a suspension or otherwise under international law—holds no legal weight in pausing the arbitration. The Court further underscored its mandate to proceed “in a timely, efficient, and fair manner,” reaffirming that legal responsibility prevails over political maneuvering.

The ruling also clarifies that the competence of the Neutral Expert, appointed in a separate parallel process by India, is similarly unaffected by Delhi’s recent stance—likely escalating tensions in the already fragile water-sha