New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday accepted the findings of the Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by retired apex court judge Justice Jasti Chelameswar, which probed wide-ranging accusations, alleged illegal wildlife transfers and the unlawful captivity of elephants, against Vantara wildlife facility in Gujarat’s Jamnagar.
“The SIT…opined and concluded that there is no violation of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, Recognition of Zoo Rules, 2009, CZA guidelines, Customs Act, 1962, Foreign Trade (Regulation and Development) Act, 1992, Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999, Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 or the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of wild Fauna and Flora,” noted a Bench of Justices Pankaj Mithal and Prasanna B. Varale in its order.
Accepting the SIT report, the Justice Mithal-led Bench observed: “The Court has no hesitation in accepting the conclusion so drawn in the report. Thus, as no contravention of law has been reported by the SIT, the complaints, particularly those listed in Schedule A in the summary of the report, stand closed.”
The SIT inquiry, the apex court said, covered the “entire range of allegations not only concerning acquisition of animals, smuggling, laundering, but also regarding welfare and husbandry, conservation and breeding, climatic and location issues, and financial and trade improprieties.”
It further said that the SIT’s investigation involved coordination with the Central Zoo Authority, Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, CITES Management Authority of India, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Customs Department and the jurisdictional police.
On the basis of the report of the SIT, the Justice Mithal-led Bench recorded that “the receipt of animals by Vantara by rescuing them from various situations and housing them in the rescue centre for conservation, and breeding programs have gone through a complex multi-layered/multi-jurisdictional statutory approvals, procedure and documentation”.
It further noted that animal imports at the Vantara wildlife facility were carried out strictly in accordance with valid permits and after clearance from multiple statutory authorities, adding that once imports are fully documented and supported by permits, their validity cannot be disputed.
“It is pertinent to mention that repeated inquiries into the affairs of Vantara pursuant to multiple complaints/petitions filed from time to time have culminated with findings of no violation of law whatsoever. Thus, there is apparently no merit in any of the allegations of animal smuggling or laundering,” the apex court said.
On the issue of welfare standards for animal conservation at Vantara, the Supreme Court, relying on the SIT’s opinion, observed that the facility’s mortality figures are consistent with global zoological averages and that its care and management practices even exceed international standards.
“Upon consideration of the entire record, we are more than satisfied that the facilities at Vantara in certain respects exceed the prescribed standards of animal husbandry, veterinary care and welfare as well as the statutory benchmarks laid down by the Central Zoo Authority,” said the Justice Mithal-led Bench.
“The periodic inspection by the Central Zoo Authority and the Chief Wildlife Warden of Gujarat, along with assessments by CITES, reinforced the above conclusion. The allegations of deficiency in welfare standards are therefore unfounded,” it added.
In its order, the Supreme Court noted that Vantara has been awarded the ‘Global Humane Certified Seal of Approval’, a recognition of significance as it provides independent validation of the facility’s animal welfare and conservation standards.
“The Deputy Director, Enforcement Directorate, from whom the SIT sought expert assistance, clarified that there is no breach of provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. The SIT deprecated the allegations and aspersions cast upon the statutory authorities, court court-appointed high-power committee and also on the Courts,” the order noted.
The Justice Mithal-led Bench said that the Vantara wildlife facility has already faced judicial scrutiny on multiple occasions, with allegations against it being rejected most of the time at every level. “To allow a cycle of speculative complaints and petitions to persist despite such authoritative determinations in the past would be wholly unjustified and amount to an abuse of the process,” the top court observed.
Taking note of the exhaustive probe conducted by the top court-appointed SIT, with assistance from central and state enforcement agencies, the Supreme Court said that the complaints/petitions, including newspaper reports, articles, and catalogues as mentioned in Schedule A to the summary, stand duly investigated and closed.
Seeking to bring finality to the matter, the Justice Mithal-led Bench directed that no further complaints or proceedings based on the same set of allegations against Vantara will be entertained before any judicial, statutory, or administrative forum.
“We may leave it open to Vantara to pursue its remedies in accordance with law for the deletion of any offending publication or for any action against those responsible for the misinformation,” the order clarified.
The SIT — which also included former Chief Justice of Uttarakhand and Telangana High Courts Justice Raghvendra Chauhan, former Mumbai Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale, and senior IRS officer Anish Gupta — ruled out allegations of misuse of carbon credits, exploitation of water resources, or financial impropriety against Vantara.
(IANS)
