In a rare show of unity, political parties in Tamil Nadu unanimously adopted a resolution in the legislative Assembly on Thursday that the state would never relinquish its right over Mullaperiyar and asked Kerala to repeal its amended Act to increase water level in the dam to 142 feet, as directed by the Supreme Court.
In a special session, chief minister J. Jayalalithaa moved the resolution asking the Centre to deploy CISF at the dam site and expressing displeasure at Kerala’s attempts to reduce the water level to 120 feet from the existing 136 feet.
Dismissing the Kerala argument that it was proposing a new dam only to give water to TN as a deception tactic, Ms Jayalalithaa accused the neighbour of spreading misinformation and creating fear over dam safety. “Kerala amended its Act in total disrespect to the Constitution to circumvent the Supreme Court verdict that allowed raising the water level to 136 feet. Now, the Kerala Assembly has adopted a resolution seeking to reduce the storage level to 120 feet. Though it warrants strong condemnation, we want to express displeasure since it would not be appropriate to adopt a resolution condemning the Kerala Assembly,” the resolution said.
Arch-rival DMK and national parties such as Congress and the Left, besides fringe outfits, unanimously backed the resolution. All parties came down heavily on Kerala politicians for playing “mischief” and attempting to snatch TN rights.
The resolution asked Kerala not to hinder TN efforts to strengthen the dam to store water up to 152 feet.