But it was not until the Environment Ministry echoed the violations raised by the Dongriya Kondhs, did the issue take centrestage. While it may seem like victory for now for this green movement, those who are being made as the 'green heroes', may actually have done far greater damage by their 'display of solidarity'.
Perhaps the biggest damage to this people's movement is through Rahul Gandhi's visit last week of Niyamgiri. Rahul Gandhi has made a legitimate people's movement seem like a stage-managed show for his announcement as the messiah of the oppressed in the corridors of power in Delhi. At his press conference Jairam Ramesh kept asserting that 'there is no politics' in his decision to stop Vedanta and his orders were based purely on legal violation. Well, if that was indeed so, why did Rahul Gandhi visit Niyamgiri on the 26th, just two days after Ramesh's press conference? Does it mean that the Saxena report and for that matter the Forest Advisory Committee recommendation were all pre-dictated? Was it boldness on the part of Ramesh to issue orders against Vedanta or was he merely acting on the direction of Rahul and Sonia Gandhi? And what does this mean for the future of environmental decision-making by the Environment Ministry? Read the full report here.
Source: IBN Live.
