Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has denied claims made by activists that he and Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev violated the wildlife preservation rules when they went on a night safari in Kaziranga National Park.
CM Sarma on Sunday stated that there is no rule prohibiting nighttime visits to the national park.
Two activists have filed a police complaint against CM Sarma, the Sadhguru and state tourism minister Jayanta Malla Baruah claiming they violated the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 when they entered the national park beyond the scheduled visit time on Saturday.
The activist claimed that in order to safeguard the wildlife and preserve their natural habitat, the Act prohibits safari tours inside national parks after a designated hour.
Videos of the Sadhguru, Sarma, and Baruah driving an open safari SUV were shared on social media and broadcast on local television.
“No violation exists. The warden may provide authorization to access a protected area, even at night, in accordance with wildlife law. Nobody is prohibited from entering at night by law. The park was formally inaugurated yesterday, and Sadhguru and Sri Sri Ravi Shankar have just arrived. Since they have thousands of followers, we anticipate that this year’s tourism season in Kaziranga will be excellent “Sarma informed the media on Sunday night.
Action should be taken against them in accordance with the Wildlife Protection Act, according to activists Soneswar Narah and Prabin Pegu, who made the complaint to the Golaghat district police.
Assam Chief Minister and Sadhguru Vasudev met with cabinet ministers, senior state bureaucrats, bureaucrats from other states, and members of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council on Saturday in Kaziranga to discuss how to develop the state holistically, how to speed up its growth, and how to make it a model in all sectors.
Sarma and Vasudev opened the three-day Chintan Shivir on Saturday at Kaziranga. Later, Chief Minister Sarma and Vasudev unveiled three rhino statues in Kaziranga at Mihimukh.