Now Reading: Omar Abdullah slams Shehbaz Sharif, says Indus treaty must stay suspended
-
01
Omar Abdullah slams Shehbaz Sharif, says Indus treaty must stay suspended
Omar Abdullah slams Shehbaz Sharif, says Indus treaty must stay suspended
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah hit back at Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday, saying the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) has "sucked the blood" of the region and must…
The Story in Brief
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah hit back at Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday, saying the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) has "sucked the blood" of the region and must remain suspended. Sharif had warned in Islamabad that every drop of Pakistan's water is a "red line" and India must "come to the right path" or face a "direct response".
Omar said out of six rivers, three belonging to J&K were handed over to Pakistan under the 1960 treaty, barring the state from drawing drinking water from the Chenab or using the Jhelum for irrigation. India placed the treaty in abeyance last year after the Pahalgam terror attack. Omar said the suspension should stay so J&K can use its waters fully.
The Indian Opinion
Both Islamabad and Srinagar are playing to their domestic galleries, but the Indus treaty's real losers have always been the people of Jammu and Kashmir, who lost control of their own rivers. Pakistan's selective sympathy for Kashmiris vanishes the moment water is discussed, while the Centre has long treated the region as a bargaining chip. The test now is whether New Delhi will restart the Tulbul Navigation Project on Wular Lake, which Pakistan has blocked since 1987, a concrete move that would show whose side it is on.
Sources (2): timesofindia.indiatimes.com, timesnownews.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
