River Indus and Sindh have lower riparian rights under customary international law as well as the Madrid Declaration; the Declaration of Montevideo; the Helsinki Rules on the Uses of the Waters of International Rivers; and the Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses. Environmental rights are now recognised as a fundamental right under Article 9A, after the 26th Constitutional Amendment.
In 2025, World Wildlife Fund-Pakistan expressed serious concerns over the Cholistan Canals Project, stating that it is a resource-driven conflict that reemphasizes the urgent need for the implementation of a national water policy based on equity, sustainability and investment in conservation and efficiency measures.
To resolve the Inter-Provincial water dispute, the Water Apportionment Accord of 1991, apportioned specific shares of total allocable water to provinces, and after all the provinces signed it, it was approved by the Council of Common Interests (CCI), and the Indus River System Authority (IRSA) was established in 1992, but instead of resolving the conflict, it approved the Cholistan Canal Project, violating Sindh’s lower riparian rights.
IRSA’s composition was then challenged before the Division Bench of the Sindh High Court (SHC), comprising of Justice Muhammad Faisal Kamal Alam and Justice Jawad Akbar Sarwana, on the ground that its Federal Member was not appointed from Sindh in violation of another Judgment of SHC given in Constitution Petition No. 5206/2013, and therefore, IRSA was not competent to issue the Water Availability Certificate for Cholistan and Thal phase II Canals’ construction.
The SHC issued notices to the Respondents on 26th March, 2025, and on 7th April, 2025, restrained the IRSA from taking any further action on the planned construction of new canals on River Indus, while directing both the Federal and Sindh Government to resolve the issue in the CCI, a constitutional Forum established under Article 153 of the Constitution.
The Judiciary in fact played a role of national mediator in resolving the Inter-Provincial dispute by ensuring that IRSA has a Federal Member from Sindh.
On 29th April, 2025, the SHC was informed that the CCI’s will not to build new canals without mutual understanding, which was a landmark achievement for federalism, setting an example about resolving disputes through constitutional mechanism; secondly, SHC was also informed about initiating the process for appointment of Federal Member of IRSA from Sindh; and the Court made an observation about resolving this issue in a holistic manner through necessary legislative amendment, keeping national cohesion as a foremost consideration, which was also previously observed on 18th April, 2025.
The Court again raised the question of protecting the lower riparian rights of Sindh on 22nd May, 2025, and observed about including Water Security in the legislative amendment, considering Sindh’s lower riparian rights, clarifying Water Security to be included in the proposed legislative amendment in accordance with UNESCO’s International Hydrological Programme’s (IHP) Strategic Plan of the Eighth Phase, which defines Water Security as the capacity of a population to safeguard access to adequate quantities of water of acceptable quality for sustaining human and ecosystem health on a watershed basis, and to ensure efficient protection of life and property against water related hazards.
On 18th August, 2025, SHC was surprised that Sindh was being ignored in distribution of water resources by the Federation as the Province was lower riparian and has significant interest in water-related issues. SHC also shown concern that the Single Bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) passed a restraining order regarding changing the composition of IRSA, but observed that a complete disclosure was not made before the IHC, and that the Federal Government is unnecessarily dragging the issue which could be resolved in light of the earlier orders, provided there is a will. Previously, on 26th June, 2025, Federal Government assured SHC that the issue will be decided within four weeks and a Federal Member in IRSA will be appointed from Sindh. But the SHC adjourned the hearing on 14th October, 2025, because the matter was fixed before the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
The sequence of the events and Court proceedings makes it apparent that the Judicature in fact played a role of national mediator in resolving the Inter-Provincial dispute by ensuring that IRSA has a Federal Member from Sindh; Sindh’s lower riparian rights are legally recognised; directing in its orders about not to undermine national cohesion and national unity, and, thus, demonstrating the role Courts can play in upholding the environmental, water and lower riparian rights. Eventually, Shafquat Hussain Wadho, a retired Chief Engineer, from Sindh was appointed as a Federal Member of IRSA and better sense prevailed.