LAHORE: Pakistan on Tuesday accused India of altering the flow of the Chenab River, one of three rivers placed under Pakistan’s control according to the now suspended Indus Waters Treaty.
This major river originates in India but was allocated to Pakistan under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, signed by the two nuclear powers.
India suspended the treaty following a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir on April 22 that killed 26 people.
Islamabad warned that tampering with its rivers would be considered “an act of war.”
“We have witnessed changes in the river (Chenab) which are not natural at all,” Kazim Pirzada, irrigation minister for Punjab province, told AFP.
Punjab, bordering India and home to nearly half of Pakistan’s 240 million citizens, is the country’s agricultural heartland, and “the majority impact will be felt in areas which have fewer alternate water routes,” Pirzada warned.
“One day the river had normal inflow and the next day it was greatly reduced,” Pirzada added.
In Azad Kashmir, large quantities of water from India were reportedly released on April 26, according to the Jinnah Institute, a think tank led by a former Pakistani climate change minister.
“This is being done so that we don’t get to utilize the water,” Pirzada added.
The gates of the sluice spillways on the Baglihar dam in Indian-administered Kashmir which lies upstream of Pakistani Punjab “have been lowered to restrict water flow ... as a short-term punitive action,” a senior Indian official has told The Indian Express.
The Indus Waters Treaty permits India to use shared rivers for dams or irrigation but prohibits diverting watercourses or altering downstream volumes.
Indian authorities have not commented yet but Kushvinder Vohra, former head of India’s Central Water Commission, told The Times of India: “Since the treaty is on pause ... we may do flushing on any project without any obligation.”
Experts said the water cannot be stopped in the longer term, and that India can only regulate timings of when it releases flows.
However, the Jinnah Institute warned: “Even small changes in the timing of water releases can disrupt sowing calendars (and) reduce crop yields.”
Pakistan accuses India of altering Chenab River flow as tensions rise
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Pakistan accuses India of altering Chenab River flow as tensions rise
- Punjab irrigation minister says Pakistan has ‘witnessed changes in the river which are not natural’
- India recently lowered the sluice gates of the Baglihar dam to restrict water as a ‘punitive action’
Pakistani court sentences TLP leader for 35 years over incitement against ex-chief justice
- The case stems from a 2024 speech targeting former Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa over a blasphemy ruling
- Conviction follows the government’s move to proscribe Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan after clashes with police this year
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court this week sentenced a leader of the religio-political party Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) to 35 years’ imprisonment on multiple charges for inciting hate against former Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa.
Peer Zaheer ul Hasan Bukhari made the remarks in a 2024 speech at the Lahore Press Club against the former chief justice for issuing a judgment in a case involving a man named Mubarak Sani under the blasphemy laws, a member of a minority religious community whose death sentence was overturned.
Authorities said Bukhari’s comments amounted to incitement to violence, after which police registered a case against him under various terrorism-related provisions as well as charges of inciting hatred.
The cleric was handed multiple jail terms on a range of charges, with the longest being 10 years of rigorous imprisonment, amounting to a total of 35 years.
“All the sections of imprisonment awarded to the convict shall run concurrently,” Anti-Terrorism Court Judge Arshad Javed said in a letter to the Kot Lakhpat Central Jail superintendent.
A collective fine of Rs600,000 ($,150) was also imposed on the TLP party leader under the provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act.
The move follows Pakistan’s decision in October to ban the TLP and designate it a proscribed organization under the Anti-Terrorism Act after violent clashes between its supporters and law enforcement in Punjab.
The unrest erupted as demonstrators attempted to travel from Lahore to Islamabad, saying they wanted to stage a pro-Palestine rally outside the US Embassy.
However, officials said TLP supporters were armed with bricks and batons, arguing their intention was to stir violence similar to earlier marches toward the federal capital.
The clashes between TLP supporters and police resulted in the deaths of five people, including two policemen, and injured more than 100 officers and dozens of protesters.
Led by Saad Hussain Rizvi, the TLP is known for its confrontational street politics and mass mobilizations.
Since its emergence in 2017, the party has repeatedly organized sit-ins and marches toward Islamabad, often triggering violent confrontations and prolonged disruptions on major routes to the capital.
