The Goa Foundation has come under a direct smear campaign by the BJP MLAs and Goa Government for filing a writ petition before the Supreme Court of India challenging the grant of 88 leases, on the eve of promulgation of the ordinance mandating grant of leases through the public auction route. Though Supreme Court has not granted any stay, the government and the BJP are feeling the heat. The Goa government has also mounted a diabolical attack on the Goa Foundation in it’s affidavit before the Supreme Court. It has questioned Goa Foundation’s integrity and dubbed it as anti-development. The Goa government is only attempting to place its failure on economic front at the doors of Goa Foundation. Earlier they blamed the environment ministry. Now with their own government at the centre, that alibi is not available and in any case it is politically not correct to blame the Supreme Court!
The attack on Claude Alvares and Goa Foundation has to be seen in the light of the attack Priya Pillai of Green Peace and Teesta Setalvad of Citizens for Justice and Peace. The Goa chief minister’s assurance to investigate the source of income of Goa Foundation in much the same way as the Green Peace was sought to be starved of funds by using the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. Both the central and the state governments are determined to paint the NGOs with the tar of hate and contempt. Any organization seen as an irritant is being hounded by questioning it’s integrity. Hundreds of non-governmental organizations find their accounts frozen as the governments embark upon the role dismantling the NGO net work in the country.
The central finance ministry through Enforcement Directorate or Income Tax Department are certainly entitled to scrutinize the accounts of NGOs under Foreign Control Regulation Act or Income Tax Act but the BJP MLAs demand a CBI inquiry into the source of funds of Goa Foundation and the Chief Minister’s assurance to investigate coupled with the vicious attack on the Foundation in the supreme court is unwarranted bordering on stupidity.
We have to remind ourselves that Goa Foundation has filed a number of public interest litigations in the High Court and Supreme Court on issues pertaining to mining, forests, pollution and Town and Country Planning. Taking into consideration its work in the field of environment and pollution the Supreme Court has nominated Goa Foundation’s Claude Alvares on the Supreme Court monitoring committee on hazardous wastes for the entire country.
It is imperative to see the role of Goa Foundation in the context of Goa mining. The then leader of opposition as head of Public Accounts Committee highlighted the illegal mining in the State of Goa. The Shah Commission pegged the ill-gotten mining to Rs 35,000 crores. Before the central environment ministry took any action in a game of one upmanship, the then Goa chief minister closed all mining activity which only facilitated the ex-parte stay on the mining operations in the State of Goa. The fact is that the writ petition filed by Goa Foundation actually succeeded in regulating and capping the mining activity and streamlining through various central and state agencies, besides creation of the permanent fund. The state government actually earned hundred of crores of rupees by e-auctioning of the ore in pursuance of the directions of the Supreme Court which came in the petition filed by the Goa Foundation.
Some organizations believe that the only way to make the governments understand the reality is to take to the streets which often leads to large scale violence and loss of property, life and limb. But Goa Foundation neither organized demonstrations and dharnas nor stoned any offices involved in mining operations. It has resorted to a most legitimate method of moving the court, whether the Supreme Court, High Court or the National Green Tribunal for relief in its endeavour to protect what is left of Goa.
Moving the courts with frivolous petitions is certainly not in public interest and condemnable as that wastes precious judicial time when legitimate disputes could be adjudicated. But when a petitioner actually succeeds in a matter before the highest court of the land and manages to get an entire industry regulated, how on earth can one contend their action is malafide and not in public interest?
The current challenge to the 88 mining leases on the ground that direct renewal option was no longer available, the only option being to hold public auction so as to generate maximum revenue and provide a level playing field for all the miners. There can be no second opinion over the fact that public auction would generate maximum revenue for the state. The current mining players who benefited by the Goa Government’s decision can certainly contend that new mining leases granted on the eve of the ordinance in 2015 are legal and in tune with the law and get an order in its favour from the highest court.
The NGOs are considered as irritants in the scheme of ruling party’s development agenda. They are seen as anti progress and the government resorts to targeting the messenger instead of dealing with the message. Laced with arrogance of power, the attack on Goa Foundation is a clear case of hate campaign against any dissent to the government path.
Forty years back Jayaprakash Narayan campaigned against authoritarianism and corruption. He was treated like as an anarchist and as one opposed to country’s progress who was designing to destabilize the country.
Priya Pillai, Teesta Setalvad and Claude Alvares provide toast and flavour to democracy in this season of hate and intolerance.
(The writer is practicing advocate, senior faculty in law and political analyst)
