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These were his most celebrated, most popular roles. But his legacy goes beyond Brand Tiger—to the courtroom, where he sat with fellow members in a committee set up the Supreme Court of India.
In an article for Seminar Magazine, Thapar said, “In July 2002, the Supreme Court took a decision to create a nationally empowered committee, called the Central Empowered Committee (CEC). Never before in the history of India had something like this been tried where five individuals were empowered by the apex court to judge and make recommendations on a series of different issues.”
This committee met every week, and away from the public eye sat Thapar, as he thundered and roared at forest officers or lawyers representing mining companies—that familiar stentorian voice jolting many out of their mid-afternoon reverie.
Not many saw him in this role, except for a handful of print journalists—TV journalists were yet to discover the importance of the CEC and its decisions. Today, there are hundreds of TV camera crews that can be seen outside the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on days when famous environment cases or those on pollution are being heard.
But in those dust-filled corridors of the CEC, not many knew about the landmark judgments coming out of it.
As someone just starting out in conservation, I would often sit in the CEC proceedings. It gave me a ringside view of how key conservation policy decisions are taken in the courtroom. Together, with members like MK Jiwrajika and Mahendra Vyas, the CEC took on the mammoth task of patiently trawling through case history and material to say yes or no to projects coming up in biodiversity-rich areas.
“It was during his time as a member of the CEC that wildlife took centre stage,” recalls environment lawyer Ritwick Dutta, who argued many times before it.
It was this quiet role, away from the camera, that Thapar played that should perhaps be marked in gold as the world grieves his loss at the age of 73.
Wildlife historian and author Mahesh Rangarajan called it an untimely and tragic loss. “Valmik Thapar in his books and excellent photographs brought not only the tiger but the forests of India alive. He also championed policies to preserve these. All concerned with nature, even those he differs with, will find this vacuum impossible to fill,” he told me.
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