Tamil Nadu Government Approaches Supreme Court Over Cauvery Water Dispute

Tamil Nadu's Legal Action on Water Rights

The Tamil Nadu government, led by Chief Minister Joseph Vijay, has taken legal action by approaching the Supreme Court regarding the ongoing Cauvery water dispute with Karnataka. The state is demanding an immediate release of its allocated water from the Cauvery River. B. Karunakaran, the lawyer representing Tamil Nadu, confirmed the filing of the petition, alleging that the amount of water allocated by the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC) is significantly lower than what Karnataka has released.

According to an official statement, Vijay had instructed the state government to seek judicial intervention concerning the Cauvery water issue. Recently, protests erupted in Karnataka over the orders to release water. The CWRC convened a meeting on July 28, 2026, directing Karnataka to release 3,500 cusecs of water for 15 days starting July 29. This directive was later upheld by the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA). However, Tamil Nadu reported that the actual water flow at Billigundulu between July 29 and August 2 ranged from 158 to 550 cusecs, which is far below the mandated amount.

A press release from the Tamil Nadu government indicated that as of August 3, Karnataka's reservoirs held a total of 77.537 TMC of water, which could be released to Tamil Nadu without any issues. It was also noted that following rainfall in the catchment areas of the KRS and Kabini dams in Karnataka, the water released at Billigundulu should be 26.954 TMC. Meanwhile, the main opposition party, DMK, has also approached the Supreme Court, demanding that the Karnataka government immediately release the pending water to Tamil Nadu. The party emphasized that Karnataka must strictly adhere to the Supreme Court's final ruling from 2018 and urged the government to comply with CWMA's directives.

In its petition, DMK requested that the court direct Karnataka to fully implement the CWRC's instructions from July 28, 2026, which were approved by the CWMA on July 30, 2026. This includes ensuring a daily flow of 3,500 cusecs at Billigundulu for a period of 15 days from the date of the court's order and addressing any shortfall that occurred since July 29, 2026.