SYL dispute: Punjab govt will have to change its attitude according to SC's directions, says Haryana CM Khattar

Chandigarh (Haryana) [India], October 6 : Days after the Supreme Court came down heavily on the Punjab government for not taking steps for the construction of the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday said that the bordering state will have to change its attitude according to the directions of the top court.
Directing the Centre to look into the mediation process over the Sutlej-Yamuna link (SYL) canal dispute, the Supreme Court on Wednesday came down heavily on the Punjab government over its approach to the issue.
Asked whether there will be any change in the attitude of the Punjab government after the apex court's observation, Haryana CM Khattar said, "See, when the Supreme Court takes any decision, the attitude is not in their hands, the attitude has to be according to the directions given by the SC."
He said that on the one hand, the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government said that it would keep in mind the interests of Haryana, while Punjab Finance Minister said they would not.
"Both things they say by sitting in the Punjab government office... The Punjab government MLA says yes, this will happen (giving water), and the Punjab Finance Minister says that we will not give water... If you had to talk about the rights of Haryana, we would have told AAP to come and hold talks in the Haryana office," the Haryana Chief Minister said in a press briefing here.
On Wednesday, a bench of justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul CT Ravikumar and Sudhanshu Dhulia, while hearing a matter relating to the Sutlej-Yamuna link (SYL) canal dispute, came down heavily on the Punjab government for not taking steps for the construction of the canal. The court remarked that Punjab has to co-operate in the process.
The court directed the Centre to survey the portion of the land allocated to Punjab. The court also directed the Centre to look into the mediation process. The court listed the matter for further hearing in January 2024.
The apex court was hearing SYL Canal dispute between Haryana and Punjab.
On July 28, 2020, the top court had asked the Chief Ministers of Punjab and Haryana to make an attempt to resolve the issue amicably.
The problem stems from the controversial 1981 water-sharing agreement after Haryana was formed out of Punjab in 1966. For effective allocation of water, the SYL canal was to be constructed and the two states were required to construct their portions within their territories.
While Haryana constructed its portion of the canal, after the initial phase, Punjab stopped the work, leading to multiple cases.
In 2004, the Punjab government had passed a law unilaterally cancelling the SYL agreement and other such pacts, however, in 2016, the apex court had struck down this law. Later, Punjab went ahead and returned the acquired land--on which the canal was to be constructed--to the landowners.