India does not recognize the international court whose decision Pakistan was boasting about; what is the whole matter?

Posted on 13th Aug 2025 by rohit kumar

Pakistan has welcomed the decision of the International Court of Arbitration, Permanent Court of Arbitration. It has interpreted the design criteria for new run-of-river hydropower projects to be built by India on the western rivers (Chenab, Jhelum, and Indus). However, India does not accept the decision of this court and has never recognized it.

 

Pakistan says that this decision justifies its stand on the Indus Water Treaty (IWT), which India suspended after the Pahalgam attack.

 

India does not recognize PCA.

 

On the other hand, India has never recognized the Permanent Court of Arbitration that gave this decision and has always insisted on the Neutral Expert Mechanism.

 

The court said in its decision that India will have to allow the water of the western rivers to flow unhindered to Pakistan.

 

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry stated on Monday, saying, "The exemption given in the treaty for hydropower plants has to be strictly followed, and not as per India's 'ideal' or 'best practices' approach."

 

What does India say?

 

India is expected to respond to this matter on Wednesday. However, the Times of India has quoted sources as saying that India had already issued a notification amending the Indus Water Treaty, especially since this step was taken amid long-standing disputes over the Kishanganga and Ratle projects in Jammu and Kashmir.

 

India never accepted that decision of the World Bank. In this decision, it was decided to simultaneously activate the neutral expert mechanism on the same issue and the arbitration court at the request of Pakistan. This is the reason why India had demanded a reconsideration of the dispute resolution process of the treaty.

 

Pakistan says that this decision of the court strengthens its concerns and obliges India to follow the rules of the treaty. On the other hand, India believes that some provisions of the treaty are not practical in today's times and need to be changed.

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