International Court of Arbitration to resume hearing Aug. 25 on Kishanganga hydel project

The seven-member Bench of the court, headed by Justice Stephen M Schwebel, had visited the project site in India Held Kashmir and downstream Pakistan side to get first-hand knowledge about the dispute between two countries.

Apart from firming up procedure for arbitration, the court had directed Pakistan to submit its memorial (affidavit) making its case against the project. With Pakistan submitting its objections, India was learnt to have also submitted its counter-memorial (affidavit) responding to Pakistan’s objections, Indian Express newspaper reported. The hearing this week will take up the issues raised by both the sides.

The case holds significance in the wake of the fact that this is the first time that Islamabad and New Delhi have gone to the International Court of Arbitration to resolve dispute pertaining to 1960 Indus Water Treaty that has withstood hostilities between the countries over the past six decades.

Copyright PPI (Pakistan Press International), 2011