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2h ago

Supreme Court Orders Time-Bound SIT Probe Into Reliance Foundation’s Vantara

The Chelameswar-led panel will file a factual report by September 12 following a physical inspection to guide further court action.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi poses for a picture with Reliance Foundation Director Anant Ambani during his visit to the wildlife rescue, rehabilitation, and conservation centre, Vantara, in Jamnagar | File Photo | ANI
The Supreme Court said the order only sought a fact-finding inquiry to ascertain the true factual position to enable the court to pass further orders
Vantara is spread over 3000 acres within the Green Belt of Reliance's Jamnagar Refinery Complex in Gujarat. It aims to be one of the leading contributors to conservation efforts globally. 
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Overview

  • The bench of Justices Pankaj Mithal and P. B. Varale named former Supreme Court judge J. Chelameswar to head a four-member SIT with Raghavendra Chauhan, Hemant Nagrale and Anish Gupta.
  • The mandate covers how animals—particularly elephants—were acquired, compliance with the Wildlife (Protection) Act and zoo rules, CITES and import–export laws, animal welfare and mortalities, site suitability, and alleged wildlife smuggling and financial irregularities.
  • The SIT is empowered to conduct on-site verification, seek information from petitioners, officials, regulators and journalists, and must receive full assistance from the CZA, CITES authority, MoEFCC and Gujarat’s forest and police departments.
  • The inquiry stems from petitions filed after the July transfer of an ailing temple elephant to Vantara, with the court noting the pleas relied on media reports but calling a fact-finding exercise necessary due to the breadth of allegations.
  • The court stressed the probe is purely fact-finding with no opinion on guilt, set a September 12 deadline for the report, listed the matter for September 15, and Vantara said it will fully cooperate.