The Delhi High Court on 19 May 2025 summarily dismissed a case of contempt of court against Himal Southasian and its Editor filed this February by Greens Zoological, Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (GZRRC) and the Radhe Krishna Temple Elephant Welfare Trust – both constituent parts of Vantara, the controversial wildlife project established by the Reliance corporation and led by the billionaire Ambani family. In its petition, Vantara had alleged that Himal wilfully disobeyed a judicial order to take down an investigative story on the wildlife project published on the Himal website in March 2024. The Delhi High Court held that there was no judicial order or direction passed by the Court against Himal requiring the magazine to remove the story, and hence the issue of contempt did not arise.
Himal Southasian Vantara contempt case order.pdf
Himal and its Editor were represented by the senior counsel Vrinda Grover. “In the guise of a contempt petition, Vantara made an attempt to legally intimidate and remove an article that raises pertinent questions about the Vantara project,” Grover said. “However, the Honourable Delhi High Court did not allow this legal machination to succeed. The litigation initiated by Vantara was in the nature of a SLAPP (Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation) suit, meant to throttle freedom of the press and public debate on issues of public interest.”