BHOPAL: Wildlife activists in the state have threatened to move the High court after information acquired through the RTI revealed that the Madhya Pradesh government has recommended the appointment of Mandar Mahajan, son of Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan, as a member of the State Wildlife Advisory Board.
Activists alleged that Mandar, 43, had no professional expertise to become a member of the Wildlife Advisory Board. Mandar is a licensed pilot and is also the chief instructor of the MP Flying Club.
As per the information accessed by city-based RTI activist Ajay Dubey, Mandar’s name was recommended by Transport Minister Bhupendra Singh and Chief Conservator of Forest (CCF), Indore, R R Okhandiyar last month.
According to Dubey, Bhupendra had ignored Section 6(1) of the Wildlife Protection Act,1972, by recommending the name of Mandar. “As per the law only those people, who have contributed significantly towards the protection of wildlife and have worked for environment, should be made a member of the board. In this case, Mandar has no such background, apart from the fact that he is the son of the Lok Sabha Speaker. The state Wildlife Board cannot be turned into a place for parking political appointees,” Dubey said.
Documents accessed by Dubey showed that Mandar had first applied for appointment as honorary wildlife warden in Indore. However, his name was then recommended as a member of the Wildlife Advisory Board. The application of Mandar says that he is “a pilot who is a wildlife enthusiast, who has been associated with WWF in the past”.
Dubey claimed that if the recommendation was not withdrawn or the government pressed ahead with the appointment of Mandar, he would be forced to move the High court.
Interestingly, Mandar’s name as a probable BJP candidate from Indore seat was almost finalised for the last year’s Assembly Elections in the state, but he was denied a ticket at the very last moment.