The question asked last week by the National Green Tribunal was: “When the law protector becomes the law violator, how will the law be protected?” It was posed in an order directed at the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority, wherein the Pune bench of the tribunal further questioned the attitude of the authority in acting towards illegal structures in coastal regulation zone areas. There were strong words in that order and we quote, “Harassment of the common man by public authorities is socially abhorring and legally impermissible. It may harm him personally but the injury to society is far more grievous. Crime and corruption thrive and prosper in the society due to lack of public resistance. Nothing is more damaging than the feeling of helplessness.” It didn’t stop there but went on to state, “A public functionary if he acts maliciously or oppressively, and the exercise of power results in harassment and agony, it is not exercise of power but its abuse.”
These are not words uttered by the common man or activists who have been drained by the indifference shown by the authorities to their problems. These are measured words and phrases, in orders passed by a National Tribunal against an authority of the State government pulling it most severely for its negligence. A few days after this, the Principal Bench of the NGT at Delhi again pulled up the GCZMA for the latter delaying in filing a reply in a case pending since 2018. The NGT noted that this was a ‘very sorry state of affairs’ and that “It is necessary in light of the CRZ notification and in light of the order passed by the Supreme Court and High Court and it is generally argued that the orders of the Supreme Court and High Court are being violated by the GCZMA directly or indirectly.” Two orders following each other place a huge question of crediblity over the authorities functioining and independence in the State.
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It is not for frivolous reasons that Goa has seen a rise in green activism in the past years. The answer is obvious that the local authorities are neither vigilant to coastal regulation zone violations in the State nor are they responsive to the people when these are brought before them. To many, the only recourse has been to turn to the tribunal with their petitions and get redressal from there. But even that gets delayed when the local authority refrains from filing its replies in time. If the coastal management authority delays in filing replies in the tribunal, can the common man expect to get a fair deal from the same authority? The GCZMA member secretary has now been asked to remain present in the tribunal with a list of cases where replies are pending and narrate the reasons why the replies have nto been filed.
The Western Zone Bench of the NGT at Pune is also clear that GCZMA’s ‘negligent’ attitude is ‘indirectly’ helping illegalities to continue. What will now occur is that the coastal management authority will file its replies in the cases, but the root cause of these delays, which is GCZMA’s indifference to the illegalities that are taking place, will not be addressed. This change for a more reactive coastal management authority cannot come through the courts, but has to come through government action in the persons who are appointed to the authority who should be those commanding respect and who are concerned with the violations and will take action against the violators. We see that the commitment has been missing and herein lies the fault with the system. The answer is no to political appointments and yes to environmental commitment.
