‘Not a drop to Pakistan’: India halts Indus Waters Treaty in wake of Kashmir terror attack

In a bold move following the deadly Pahalgam terror attack that claimed 26 civilian lives on April 22, the Indian government has suspended the decades-old Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) with Pakistan, signaling a dramatic shift in bilateral water-sharing dynamics.

Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil minced no words April 25, declaring: “We will ensure that not even a drop of water from the Indus River goes to Pakistan.” His statement came just a day after New Delhi officially notified Islamabad of the treaty’s suspension with immediate effect.

The decision, sources say, is part of a broader package of strategic countermeasures against Pakistan, orchestrated during a high-level meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Patil, along with Power Minister Manohar Lal, was briefed by top officials on a three-pronged strategy to redirect and utilize waters from the Indus basin — targeting short, medium, and long-term implementation.

While the government is currently studying the legal and technical frameworks that would enable diversion of the Indus system’s flow within India, Patil reiterated that the move was “historic,” and undertaken “in national interest.”

The Indus Waters Treaty, signed in 1960 after nine years of World Bank-brokered negotiations, allocates control of the “eastern rivers” — Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi — to India, while granting Pakistan rights over the “western rivers” — Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab. Suspending this treaty grants New Delhi greater leverage over how these crucial waters are managed and utilized.

The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) had taken the call to pause the treaty a day after the terror attack, and India wasted no time in conveying its decision to Pakistan.

Across the border, the development sparked swift political fallout. Pakistan’s government, already facing internal dissent over its controversial Cholistan canal project in Punjab province, announced Friday that the initiative would be halted.

Launched in February by Army Chief General Asim Munir and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, the project aimed to irrigate arid regions of Cholistan but triggered protests in Sindh, where parties like the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) accused the federal government of ignoring inter-provincial equity.

The timing of India’s announcement intensified pressure on Islamabad, prompting an emergency meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and PPP leader Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari. The two agreed to suspend all canal-related work until a consensus is reached in the Council of Common Interests — the constitutional forum meant to resolve such disputes.

Addressing a joint press conference with Bilawal, Sharif said: “There will be no further canal construction until a mutual consensus is achieved among the provinces. The federal government will not proceed without agreement from all stakeholders.”

India’s latest move underscores a strategic shift — using water as both a resource and a geopolitical tool in response to cross-border aggression. As New Delhi explores the full spectrum of options under the IWT's suspension, a new chapter in Indo-Pakistani relations begins — one shaped not by diplomacy alone, but by control of rivers that define the region.