The Reminiscences of Zafrulla Khan — Page 173
157 REMINISCENCES OF SIR MUHAMMAD ZAFRULLA KHAN Valley canals system that are situated just outside the Town of Ferozpur, which, under that arrangement, would be included in Pakistan. The whole of the water of that canal system flowing through those headworks went to Pakistan and Bikaner, one of the Indian states - 83 percent to Pakistan and 17 percent to Bikaner. The Bikaner State and the Jaisalmer State both in Rajputana would be contiguous both to Pakistan and to India; therefore, they could accede either to Pakistan or to India. It was well known that the rulers of both these States were not at all anxious to accede to India. They thought they would get a better deal by acceding to Pakistan. This canal, which took off from the Ferozpur headworks and which went to Bikaner was in a sense Bikaner's lifeline, the only irrigation system that state had. If in addition to the desire of these two rulers to accede to Pakistan, not because they had more love for Pakistan than for India, but mainly because they thought that India's policy towards Indian states would be one of rapid integration and Pakistan might not proceed so rapidly or to such an extreme length and they might be able to make better terms with Pakistan, the Maharaja of Bikaner found that the control of the waters that came into his state, upon which the prosperity of the state depended, was in Pakistan's hand, that might prove a decisive factor in impelling him to accede to Pakistan. In view of that contingency the inference is almost irresistible that Mr. Nehru must have approached Lord Mountbatten to procure a modification of the award in that respect. There is no other explanation, why, after the award had been communicated to Mr. Abel, Sir Evans Jenkins and Mr. Trivedi (and almost certainly to the Viceroy) and had no longer any authority to modify the award, the award was modified. This aspect did not come to the knowledge of the Pakistan authorities until months later, whereas it was presumably within Mr. Nehru's knowledge through Mr. Trivedi from the outset. The Governor of West Pakistan owed no duty to anybody, except the Central Government of India, of which the head was Prime Minister Nehru. Mr. Trivedi also, also owed no duty to anybody except to Mr. Nehru. So it was quite right of Mr. Trivedi to let Mr. Nehru know what the proposed award was, and the Governor of West Pakistan was under no duty to let anybody on the Pakistan side know, since Pakistan had not yet come into existence and nobody on that side had any right to know what the decision was.