Delhi High Court permits advocate Ritwick Dutta to travel abroad

The Delhi High Court recently allowed environmental lawyer Ritwick Dutta, who has been booked by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a case under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), to travel to Switzerland and Germany. [Ritwick Dutta v. Union of India and Ors].Justice Subramonium Prasad took into account the fact that Dutta, the founder of Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment (LIFE), has been practising law in the national capital for the last 21 years and was a recipient of Right to Livelihood Award, 2021.“It is stated that the petitioner has roots in the society,” the Court noted while granting Dutta the permission to travel abroad next week and in December.Dutta is scheduled to visit Geneva in Switzerland from November 23 to November 25. He also sought permission to travel to Germany from December 3 to December 8..The 'chilling effect' of Ritwick Dutta's case could stifle the fight for environmental justice.The order was passed on Dutta’s petition challenging the Look-Out Circular (LOC) got issued against him by the CBI. The agency has accused Dutta of receiving foreign contribution from US-based nonprofit public interest organisation Earthjustice to stall coal projects in India. In the application seeking permission to travel abroad, Dutta said he is a Fellow at the University of Bonn in Germany and has to attend the Right to Livelihood Workshop from December 4 to December 7.The Court was also told Dutta has also been given opportunity to participate in a one-day seminar being conducted by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Environment.The application also said that Dutta has been invited as a guest speaker in various universities in the USA, Chile, Argentina, Thailand, Switzerland, Nigeria and Germany..Considering the facts and circumstances, the Court allowed Dutta to travel to Geneva and Germany subject to certain conditions including furnishing a security of ₹5 lakh. “The permission to travel abroad given in this order shall be subject to other applicable conditions, and will not be deemed as a direction to any other authority,” Justice Prasad while disposing of Dutta’s application. Senior Advocate Trideep Pais with Advocates Abhishek and A Reyna Shruti represented the petitioner.Advocate Anurag Ahluwalia with Abhigyan Siddhan represented the Union of IndiaSpecial Public Prosecutor Ripu Daman Bhardwaj with Advocates Kushagra Kumar and Abhinav Bhardwaj represented the CBI[Read Order]