On May 26, the Delhi High Court ordered authorities to unfreeze Greenpeace India’s bank accounts apart from allowing the NGO to receive local donations, which amounts to 70% of its funds, into its two main accounts. The Indian home ministry froze seven bank accounts connected with the organisation in April in a series of moves against the activists since Narendra Modi government came to power.
However, less than a week after the court ruling, Greenpeace India, which has been at loggerheads with the government over claims of environmental damage caused by India’s heavy reliance on coal and the impact of deforestation and nuclear projects, was shocked to see investigators on its Chennai office’s doors on June 3 looking into the organization’s society status—the legal basis on which Greenpeace operates in India.
“Greenpeace India has turned out to be stronger than the [Indian Ministry of Home Affairs] expected. As a result, the bureaucrats in Delhi are searching desperately for new ways to shut us down. We refuse to be intimidated, and we will cooperate fully with this investigation, as we have done throughout,” Program Director Divya Raghunandan said.
Greenpeace India has also been summoned to a tax hearing on June 12, for which its accountants have been told to prepare for a large tax bill. “This week our society status is under investigation, next week we will face a huge tax bill. The pattern here is so obvious it is frankly embarrassing for the government. It is using the bureaucracy to strangle us because of our successful campaigns, to protect our forests from mining especially those that call for cleaner air in our cities and greater transparency from coal companies. Our response to this is simple. We will continue to campaign against air pollution and for a cleaner environment for all Indians. These arbitrary attacks have only made us more determined to win our campaigns,” added Raghunandan.
‘Violating right to freedom’: Greenpeace international member denied entry into India http://t.co/E993RRuWU5 pic.twitter.com/6Mu4UmY17M
— Firstpost (@firstpost) June 8, 2015
No dissent means no democracy. Stand up for @greenpeaceIndia! http://t.co/AOi0jNBfm5 #ISupportGreenpeaceIndia pic.twitter.com/dpR8tujIPW
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) June 4, 2015
India’s air has become lethal. http://t.co/5WjZhbqwMc pic.twitter.com/RbccfRatfo
— Greenpeace (@Greenpeace) June 1, 2015
A glimmer of light, but @greenpeaceindia still fighting for survival. http://t.co/mMzQ6QdnSx #ISupportGreenpeaceIndia pic.twitter.com/jwfPyb3DWy
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) May 29, 2015
