ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is preparing to challenge India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) at multiple international legal forums, as regional tensions rise following last week’s attack in Pahalgam.
Minister of State for Law and Justice Aqeel Malik said consultations on a legal strategy were nearly complete and options included approaching the World Bank, the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice, and the UN Security Council. Malik said a final decision would be taken soon and might involve action on more than one front.
He emphasised that the treaty, signed in 1960, cannot be suspended unilaterally and contains no clause allowing such a move. India suspended the treaty after blaming Pakistan for the Pahalgam attack, in which 26 tourists were killed, claiming two of the attackers were Pakistani.
Pakistan has rejected the accusation and its National Security Committee warned that any attempt to stop or divert Pakistan’s share of water would be treated as an act of war. The Indus system sustains 80% of Pakistan’s irrigated agriculture and hydropower generation.
Despite past wars and tensions, the treaty had remained intact for over six decades. Experts say India’s ability to cut off flows is limited, as it is only permitted to construct run-of-the-river hydropower plants without large reservoirs on the rivers allocated to Pakistan.
