'Rise above gutter': Abdullah, Mufti spar over Tulbul Navigation Project
What's the story
A fierce debate has erupted between Jammu and Kashmir leaders Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti over the "revival" of the Tulbul Navigation Project. The controversy started after CM Abdullah shared a video of the abandoned project, asking, "Now that Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) has been....suspended, I wonder if we will be able to resume the project." The project was terminated in 1987 due to pressure from Pakistan, which invoked clauses of the IWT that prohibit any storage along the Jhelum.
Twitter Post
Check out the tweet here
The Wular lake in North Kashmir. The civil works you see in the video is the Tulbul Navigation Barrage. It was started in the early 1980s but had to be abandoned under pressure from Pakistan citing the Indus Water Treaty. Now that the IWT has been “temporarily suspended” I… pic.twitter.com/MQbGSXJKvq
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) May 15, 2025
Project potential
Abdullah advocates for project revival amid treaty suspension
Abdullah, in his post, argued that the project would allow navigation on the Jhelum River and enhance power generation for downstream projects in winter. The IWT allocates all of the water from the eastern rivers—Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi—to India, while the waters of western rivers —Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab —have been allotted mostly to Pakistan. After Abdullah shared the post, Mufti called the remarks "irresponsible" and "dangerously provocative," especially given the fragile peace between India and Pakistan.
Accusations exchanged
Mufti accuses Abdullah of seeking 'cheap publicity points'
In response, Abdullah accused Mufti of trying to score "cheap publicity points" and ignoring the IWT's historical betrayal of J&K's interests. He argued that opposing the treaty is not warmongering but correcting an injustice. Mufti then brought up Abdullah's grandfather Sheikh Abdullah's past stance on Pakistan accession. "It's worth recalling that your esteemed grandfather...once advocated for accession to Pakistan for over two decades after losing power. But post being reinstated as CM...he suddenly reversed his stance by aligning with India."
Retort
'I'll rise above the gutter'
Dragging the argument further, Abdullah asked Mufti if this was the best argument she could bring in. "Taking cheap shots at a person you yourself have called Kashmir's tallest leader. I'll rise above the gutter you want to take this conversation to by keeping the late Mufti Sahib and 'North Pole South Pole' out of this," he wrote.