PANAJI
The Bombay High Court has asked the Goa government to explain the process behind the grant of permission to hold the Sunburn Music Festival at Anjuna in the final week of December last year after the Court smelled a rat in the process to issue permission.
“The petitioner, respondent no.10 (Sunburn) and the Deputy Collector who has issued the permission dated 28.12.2022 under the Noise Pollution Rules must file affidavits giving full details about the application and how the same was processed. Necessary copies must also be annexed to the affidavit,” the High Court bench of Justices M S Sonak and Valmiki Menezes Sa said.
The High Court noted how “permission was granted on 28.12.2022 based upon the application which was inwarded only on 27.12.2022.”
“The Chief Secretary should also look into the process by which permission was granted on 28.12.2022 based upon the application which was inwarded only on 27.12.2022. The Chief Secretary should look into the notification dated 05.01.2022 containing the Department of Environment and Climate Change action plan in the context of the Noise Pollution Rules. The Chief Secretary must report on the officers who were involved in this process of grant of permission,” the High Court said.
The High Court was hearing a petition filed by one Rajesh Sinary, who in his petition alleged that music above the permitted limit was played on all the three days by the organisers despite specific directions from the High Court to stop the event if the music exceeds the levels.
Back in January the High Court noted how it was “sorry to record that the Authorities seem to take great pride in tolerating the breaching of the Noise Pollution Rules and, more particularly, themselves breaching the repeated directions issued by this Court from time to time to enforce the Rules and Regulations concerning the control of noise pollution.”
“At least, prima facie, this appears to be a case of deliberate inaction or the lack of will to enforce the law,” the High Court bench of Justices M S Sonak and Bharat Deshpande ruled.
The Chief Secretary has been directed to file a detailed report within 15 days.
