External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that the Narendra Modi-led government has placed the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) in abeyance, linking its revival to Pakistan’s renunciation of cross-border terrorism.
He asserted that this move corrects a historical error made by former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.
During a debate on Operation Sindoor, Jaishankar began by paying tribute to the Indian Armed Forces.
>Referring to the Pahalgam terror attack on 22 April, he condemned the brutality of the assault, stating, “It was a shocking attack for a variety of reasons — the manner in which people were killed in front of their families, the fact that their religion was asked before killing them, and the intent of destroying the economy of Jammu and Kashmir which had returned to prosperity and normalcy after the end of Article 370 — all of this angered the country. There was grief and shock. Across the world, there was solidarity and sympathy.”
Calling the attack a clear violation of India’s red lines, Jaishankar stressed that ‘severe consequences’ and ‘justice for the perpetrators and their supporters’ were necessary.
He noted that the Cabinet Committee on Security’s swift action on 23 April was India’s first strong message of resolve and retaliation.
Diplomatic Measures Taken Against Pakistan
The minister listed key diplomatic responses:
- Cancellation of Pakistani visas under SAARC
- Downsizing of diplomatic staff
- Expulsion of Pakistani military advisors
- Suspension of the Indus Water Treaty
Elaborating on the significance of the treaty, Jaishankar remarked, “The Indus Water Treaty in many ways is a very unique agreement. I cannot think of any agreement in the world where a country has allowed its major rivers to flow to the next country without having rights on that river. It was an extraordinary agreement, and it is important, when we have put it in abeyance, to recall the history of this event.”
Quoting parliamentary records from the 1960s, he criticised Nehru’s justification of the treaty by highlighting concern for Pakistan’s West Punjab over the needs of Indian farmers in Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh.
“Not a word about the interests of our own people. He said, ‘We purchased peace’. But within a year, that same Prime Minister admitted there was no peace with Pakistan. What we purchased was not peace, but appeasement,” Jaishankar asserted.
He further asserted that India has received ‘terrorism, attacks, and wars’ from Pakistan since the treaty’s inception, rather than ‘friendship and goodwill’.
Concluding his statement, Jaishankar reaffirmed the government’s stand, noting, “This was not a price of peace, but a price of appeasement. The Modi government has corrected the mistakes of Pandit Nehru’s policies by suspending the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan. The Indus Water Treaty will be held in abeyance until Pakistan irrevocably gives up its support of terrorism. Blood and water will not flow together.”
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