Inter-State Water Disputes Act, 1956

The State of Andhra Pradesh filed a suit under Article 131 of the Constitution seeking to restrain Maharashtra from constructing the Babhali barrage within the water spread area of Andhra's Pochampad dam and from drawing water from it. The dispute centered on the interpretation of the 6 October 1975 water‑sharing agree…

The President of India made a reference under Article 143(1) of the Constitution seeking the Supreme Court's opinion on whether auction is the only permissible method for disposal of all natural resources, following the Court's judgment in the 2G case which had quashed spectrum licenses and directed auction. The Court …

The State of Himachal Pradesh sued the Union of India and five other parties seeking its share of electricity generated by the Bhakra‑Nangal and Beas hydro‑electric projects, claiming entitlement based on the submergence of its territory and the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966. The Court examined whether the suit was b…

The Supreme Court considered a contempt petition (Civil) No. 225 of 2013 filed by the State of Tamil Nadu against the Chief Minister of Karnataka and others, arising out of the inter‑state Cauvery water dispute. The petition sought to hold the respondents in contempt for allegedly violating the earlier judgment in Civi…

The Supreme Court adjudicated appeals against the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal's 2007 award allocating waters of the inter-State river Cauvery among Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Puducherry. The Court upheld the Tribunal's adoption of the principle of equitable apportionment as recognized in international rules…

The Kachchh Jal Sankat Nivaran Samiti filed a public‑interest writ petition challenging the Gujarat government's allocation of water from the Sardar Sarovar Project to the Kutch district, alleging violation of Articles 39(b) and 38(2) of the Constitution. The High Court dismissed the petition, holding that the allocati…

The Supreme Court was asked by the President, under Article 143, to opine on the constitutional validity of the Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, 2004, which sought to terminate the 1981 Punjab‑Haryana‑Rajasthan water‑sharing agreement and nullify Supreme Court decrees ordering completion of the Sutlej‑Yamuna Link …