The Centre on Friday moved the Supreme Court seeking a two-week extension to frame the Cauvery water sharing scheme, The Hindu reported. If the extension is granted, the scheme will be framed only five days after the Karnataka Assembly elections on May 12, according to The News Minute.

Reacting to this plea, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader OS Manian said that the Centre did not want to form the Cauvery Management Board till the Karnataka elections were held. “This delay is unnecessary. We have to see how the Supreme Court responds to this,” reported The News Minute.

On April 9, the top court had asked the Centre to file a draft scheme on the implementation of its February 16 order by the next hearing on May 3. The court had also asked the Tamil Nadu and Karnataka governments to ensure that there was peace in their states and rebuked the Centre for ignoring its orders on setting up the Cauvery Management Board. “You have to frame the scheme and there is no escaping this task,” the court reportedly told the Centre.

On February 16, the top court awarded its final verdict on the Cauvery water-sharing dispute, where it allotted 177.25 thousand million cubic feet of Cauvery water per year to Tamil Nadu and increased Karnataka’s allocation by 14.75 thousand million cubic feet per year. The court had directed the Centre to frame a scheme within six weeks of the verdict. The deadline to set up the board ended on March 29, after which the Centre asked the Supreme Court for six more weeks to set it up, saying the Karnataka elections will be held in May.

The Karnataka results will be out on May 15.