In the
second week of July, Delhi Chief Minister stated that experts had concluded
that an ominous increase in the water levels of the Yamuna was improbable and
therefore flooding of Delhi was not expected. Yamuna had other plans. Soon the
river crossed the danger mark and breached her bank in many places.
Delhiites
started fretting and fuming. They started cursing the river, unmindful of her
uninterrupted blessings to Delhi in the form of supply of water and
nutrient-enrichment of the capital’s soil. Yamuna realised that neither the
government(s) nor the citizens would come to her rescue and therefore she had
to approach the courts of law to get relief from people’s anger. The waters of
the Yamuna entered the Supreme Court confident that the Court being the
sentinel on the qui vive would protect the interests of all. In her desperation
for immediate succour from people’s wrath and governments’ insouciance, Yamuna
overlooked the judicial protocol that required her to go to the High Court
first.
The Supreme
Court was aghast that the Yamuna waters had entered it and that the Court was
also subject to nature’s fury. The Court dismissed Yamuna’s petition in limine
and asked her to maintain judicial discipline and approach the High Court first.
So, the holy Yamuna who was willing to give way to Lord Krishna soon after His
birth despite heavy downpour but was unable to contain herself now, filed her
petition in the Delhi High Court.
The petition
was an essay partly in pathos and largely in legalese. Yamuna bemoaned in the
petition, “I have constantly been of service to citizens of Delhi without
expecting any reward from them. At the same time, I did not expect them to
curse me as they are doing now.” The petition stated three reasons why Yamuna
had a Constitutional right to be protected by the court.
1) Idols have been accepted as juridical
persons by the courts. Just like idols, rivers are also worshipped by people.
Therefore, in recognition of their divinity, rivers also need to be recognised
as persons. Under Article 21 of our Constitution, “no person shall be deprived
of their life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by
law.” Personal liberty includes the right to free movement within India. Hence
neither the government(s) nor the people have a right to frown upon Yamuna for
breaching her banks.
2) Under Article 51A(g), it is the duty
of every citizen of India “to protect and improve the natural environment
including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and to have compassion for
living creatures.” Though as a Directive Principle this duty is not
enforceable, the petition pleads that as a measure of judicial progressivism,
the court may issue a writ of mandamus directing the government to ensure that
citizens discharge their duty for the sake of sustainable environment. Redirecting
the rivers to facilitate construction of buildings must be stopped as an
immediate measure. Condign punishment should be meted out to those throwing
waste and pollutants into the river.
3) Unprecedented torrential rains inundating
almost all parts of Delhi during July, 2023 were an act of God (force majeure)
and therefore Yamuna was freed from the obligation to provide trouble-free
service to Delhiites during this crucial period. People do not have any right
to blame the river for the havoc caused by the act of God.
(Though this is an imaginary petition, this essay is written
with a view to sensitising us to the need for keeping our rivers clean and
protecting them from the greed of real
estate developers.)
