BackDelhi HC issues notices to Centre, IB on petition by Greenpeace activist’s plea
Greenpeace activist Priya Pillai was not allowed on an aircraft departing for the UK on 11 January
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New Delhi: The Delhi high court on Wednesday issued notices to the home ministry, Intelligence Bureau and immigration authorities on a petition by Greenpeace activist Priya Pillai, who was not allowed on an aircraft departing for the UK on 11 January.
Pillai’s lawyer Indira Jaising questioned the legal basis of a lookout notice, which allegedly led to the incident, as there is no such provision in India’s passports law.
Jaising argued that as long as Pillai had a valid passport and visa, she could not be prevented from leaving the country except due to the provisions of the passports law, none of which applied to Pillai.
Pillai also requested that she be allowed to leave the country to meet a British member of Parliament on 11 February.
Pillai was de-boarded by immigration authorities while she was on her way to the UK to meet some British lawmakers regarding alleged human rights violation at Mahan forest in Madhya Pradesh where a proposed coal mining project would uproot local communities.
A British multinational company is involved in the project. The counsel appearing for the government argued that Pillai had already written to the government seeking reasons for her so-called offloading and she should have waited for a response before approaching the court.
The court will further hear the matter on 6 February.
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