Mahadayi: Karnataka reaches out to Goa

Water Resources Minister M B Patil on Friday took exception to a recent statement by Goa Water Resources Minister Vinod Palyekar on Karnataka’s stance on the Mahadayi river water dispute.

In a strongly worded letter to his Goa counterpart, Patil termed as provocative and divisive Palyekar’s statement that Karnataka was playing dirty tricks on the issue.

“The statement that Karnataka is playing ‘dirty tricks’ is not only provocative and divisive, but also wholly false. It is height of nonsense to presume that Karnataka's witness has been ‘exposed’. No party state can make a statement prejudging the outcome of the adjudication by the tribunal,” Patil has stated.

The letter further adds that constitutional responsibilities mandate both states to communicate in a “parliamentary” language, and avoid intemperate language.

Patil, however, again reached out to the Goa government seeking it to take measures for settling the issue through talks.