The National Green Tribunal (NGT) recently levied a Rs 5 crore fine on the Art of Living foundation event scheduled to begin on Friday on the banks of the Yamuna in Delhi. This was a victory for many environmentalists who were fighting to save the already troubled Yamuna banks. Vimlendu Jha, founder of Swechha, an NGO which deals with social and environmental issues has been active in this debate. Arushi Bedi talks to him about the judgement as well as the political clout that surrounds the Art of Living.
How do you view Sri Sri Ravishankar's refusal to pay the NGT fine?
The foundation did not pay heed to the January 20 order for which they have been criminalised. Now they are saying they will not pay the Rs 5 crore which happens to be only the initial amount of a huge settlement. He is basically saying that we do not believe in the environment or the government for that matter. The court has deliberated on the case and come to a conclusion. They clearly don't care about what the judiciary tells them. Not only that, all over TV, they have made it clear that they don't believe in the court's order, nor did they dirty the Yamuna. You are then essentially questioning the integrity of the highest environmental court in India. The problem is the government is silent on this. There seems to be a complacency of some sort within the government. The reason why the foundation could come this far is because there was some sort of government support. Right now I don't have faith in what the government does. Uma Bharati had the audacity to say in court that all laws were followed before going forward. The court has already given them one extra day to pay the fine.
How does the NGT judgment stand?
The judgement is a victory for us because everyone that we were fighting against has been penalised and their connivance has been established by the court. The title of the judgment is a little disappointing as the event will still go on as planned, but if you read the subtext, the entire judgment establishes everything we have been claiming including that the state was irresponsible and they did not fulfill their duty. It also establishes that Art of Living foundation has destroyed the floodplains.
The current situation has shown how both individuals and authorities did not follow the rule of law and had the audacity to go this far without any permission. If you read the judgment, it is very evident that the foundation has used some kind of a clout. The judgment clearly says that an event of such a scale is subject to permission. How will they be able to get permission so soon? It's like you first construct something and then go ask for permission.
Also, I feel that the media has not done a good job in reporting the complete judgment despite the court clearly warning journalists about this. The foundation has been charged an interim deposit of Rs 5 crore. A principal committee will now inspect the place after the event and within 4 weeks give its estimates on how much money is to be paid. The principal committee, on the 20th of February had already submitted a report saying the damage amounted to Rs 120 crore. The committee will add more amount over and above the Rs 120 crore after the site is inspected again. It has also opened up a larger debate on the Baba's political associations and pull within the government.
Do you feel the petition to stop the event came a bit too late?
I think there is a public debate around this issue now. One can still ask the petitioners why they were late in filing the petition. It is important to understand that it is not the job of the petitioners to establish the rule of law. We came to know in December but the government knew much earlier. If laws are being violated, if NGT's orders have been ignored, they should be more thankful that somebody brought it their notice, however late or early. This is not just a responsibility of "responsible citizens" in the end. Whether you find corruption on the 9th or 10th day doesn't really matter.
The Yamuna flood plains have been a venue for several other events including the Commonwealth Village as well as the Akshardham Temple. Why is this different and how much of it is an influence of political intervention?
One cannot ignore the fact that there is a lot of damage that has happened to the flood plains and eco diversity in the area already. We are as a nation too late to realise the importance of public ecology, public land and the river ecosystem. In fact, more than once, we have seen the state being complacent in this. We've seen the state the Delhi secretariat that operates on the floodplains. It has taken the Congress 60 years to reach the level of destruction we see today, the NDA government 10 years but for Kejriwal, it has only taken a few months. If you look at Kejriwal's tweets, it says all politics and controversies on the issue should rest now, as if the commentary on the subject was useless. It seems like if we support him, we become a good public but if we oppose his policies, we become a bad brand of media. I am completely shocked at the stance the Aam Aadmi Party has taken.
Even when the debate went to Rajya Sabha, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi lied about how the foundation had all the permissions required while the court clearly says the opposite. All this is happening in the capital, imagine how our resources could be used by these god men and their chelas where there is no Manoj Mishra to file a petition. We are now being branded as anti-national because of this. Look at the number of people who have been charged under sedition for opposing projects just like these. There are hundreds of tribals who have been charged for trying to overthrow corporate projects on similar lines.
What does the fact that people still want to come for this event despite the NGT's statement say about the society's position on this debate?
This is a very interesting question. First, we don't even know who these people are. It is clear that no one cares about public ecology in a situation such as this. Citizens are blinded by religion and god men who propagate these ideas. It is very unfortunate that spirituality and religion have come together under a banner of a big named guru. We also need to address the issue of public money that is being used, with the army being deployed and more importantly, public safety at large there is no structural clearance for the seven acre stage.
Moreover, hundreds of farmers have been asked to move out of the area so that this baba can chant there. So it's also a wide commentary on how people look at an event such as this and how pubic leaders look at it. Why should there be a sitting President or Prime Minister coming for an event like this which clearly violates every basic human and ecological ethics? How can they come for an event which is organised without any clearances?
How much of this do you think is being done to enhance the Baba's image?
That is exactly what is happening. Imagine Sri Sri is coming here and saying he wants to organise an event on the floodplains of Yamuna to clean it. At the same time, most lakes in his hometown Bangalore are in bad shape. He is not bothered about that, in the modern day, you have to be a guru that connects, and speaks the language of the people. This façade of an internationally connected, English speaking guru active on social media is extremely important for the guru. So is a proximity to politicians across party lines. It is important to ask how they could organise an event without any permission from any ministries. This is the first time when the AAP and BJP which are otherwise at war have come out in support of the same event. Why is there no centre vs state fight on this issue? It is ridiculous that Kejriwal's politics has become the same as the others.
What do you have to say about the argument that whatever said and done, the venue was a job creator?
Jobs can be created in many ways. A gun factory or terrorist camp also creates jobs. The thing is the right to live is much more important than the right to grow. And to live, the protection of the environment is paramount. With the same logic, I can say we should start farming near India Gate to create jobs for the farmers. Jobs should be created where it is needed, not on a river area which is already ecologically unstable.
