Cauvery water sharing: Sit together and solve the dispute, SC tells Karnataka, Tamil Nadu CMs

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Chief Ministers of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to meet and sort out the differences over the Cauvery river water sharing issue. The apex court asked Karnataka Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa to break the logjam through a meaningful dialogue and arrive at an amicable solution.

"Why the two Chief Ministers can't sit together? Give it a try, it is not impossible," a bench of justices DK Jain and Madan B Lokur said. "We want you to meet in a congenial manner and discuss the issue in the larger interest of farmers from both states," it said.

The court said that it is not possible for Cauvery River Authority (CRA) headed by the Prime Minister to meet, so the state governments should meet to find a solution. "Try to find out a solution through give and take," the bench said, adding that "the Chief Ministers should not meet just for coffee but they should meet along with their experts

The court pointed out that in the larger interests of the farmers, it would not be difficult for the two states to thrash out a solution.

to file a solution".

Senior advocate Fali S Nariman, appearing for Karnataka, said there is no problem in meeting and the Karnataka Chief Minister will certainly meet. Counsel appearing for Tamil Nadu, however, remained non-committal and said that he will have to take instructions from the concerned authority. The bench urged both the Chief Ministers to have a meeting and posted the matter for directions on Friday.

The Supreme Court had earlier directed the Cauvery Monitoring Committee to examine questions raised by both states. Tamil Nadu's prime grouse remains that Karnataka has not returned nine thousand cusecs of water to it as directed by the apex court.

(With additional information from PTI)

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