In the complaint by Soneswar Narah and Prabin Pegu, residents of Morongiyal and Balijan Adarsh model villages near the park, it has been alleged that the jeep safari with the vehicle's headlights blazing after dusk was "in violation of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972". They have demanded the immediate arrest of Sadhguru Jagdish 'Jaggi' Vasudev, Sarma, state Tourism Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah and others, who were part of the jeep safari. Else, they wanted a public apology from the alleged violators as per law.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has dismissed as baseless allegations by activists that he along with Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev broke wildlife protection law by entering the Kaziranga National Park for a night safari.
"There is no violation. According to wildlife law, the warden can give permission to enter a protected area even at night. No law stops people from entering at night. Yesterday, we had the formal opening of the park for this season and now Sadhguru and Sri Sri Ravi Shankar have arrived. Since they have lakhs of followers, this time we expect the tourist season will be very good for Kaziranga," Sarma told reporters on Sunday night.
The complainants also demanded stringent action against the Sadhguru for entering the park after the end of the stipulated time for tourists and driving a jeep with headlights on. Narah and Pegu asserted that the fringe dwellers have sacrificed their land, cattle and endured many hardships for the cause of protection of the park and have always abided by the rules and laws. "Blatant disregard to the laws by VIPs should not be tolerated", they said.
The Kaziranga National Park was opened for tourists for the forthcoming season the previous day. Sarma had also shared a short video of the safari on Twitter. Sadhguru, the Isha Foundation leader, was in Kaziranga for the opening of a three-day ‘Chintan Shivir’ for ministers, legislators and bureaucrats of the state.
*With inputs from agencies
