Supreme Court Clears Vantara Of Smuggling, Money Laundering Allegations

The Supreme Court cleared Reliance Foundation-owned Vantara of all allegations of animal smuggling, money laundering, and violation of statutory laws, ruling that no court or administrative forum will entertain similar complaints in the future, reported Hindustan Times.

A bench of justices Pankaj Mithal and PB Varale accepted the findings of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) chaired by former Supreme Court judge Jasti Chelameswar.

The SIT, which also included former high court chief justice Raghavendra Chauhan, former Mumbai Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale, and Additional Commissioner, Customs, Anish Gupta, submitted its sealed report on 12 September.

The court opened it on Monday (15 September) before dismissing the petitions filed by lawyer CR Jaya Sukin and Dev Sharma.

“The court has no hesitation in accepting the conclusion so drawn in the report. Thus, as no contravention of law has been reported by the SIT, the complaints particularly those listed in Schedule A in the summary of the report stand closed,” the bench said.

It added that “no further complaint or proceedings based upon such same set of allegations shall be entertained before any judicial statutory or administrative forum.”

The SIT, after field visits and consultations with central and state agencies, found no violations of wildlife, customs, foreign trade, or money laundering laws. It also dismissed allegations of misuse of carbon credits, water resources, and financial impropriety as “baseless.”

Senior advocate Harish Salve, representing Vantara, said, “We must have a decent burial on this issue.”

Welcoming the verdict, Vantara stated, “The SIT’s report and the Supreme Court’s order have made it clear that the doubts and allegations raised against Vantara’s animal welfare mission were without any basis.”

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