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Environment nion Minister of Women

and Child Development
Maneka Gandhi and Ani-
ministry in tight U (AWBI) Chairman SP Gupta
mal Welfare Board of India’s
are at loggerheads with Gupta report-
spot over rift edly submitting his resignation on Janu-
ary,25, 2019, which is yet to be accepted
by the government. Although Gupta
says that he had resigned as he was una-
between Maneka ble to devote time to run his cow shelter
(Kamdhenu Gowdham and Arogya San-
sthan) in Mewat district in Haryana, but
it is believed that he was unhappy due to
and AWBI chief alleged interference in the board’s func-
tioning by Maneka Gandhi.
However, Maneka Gandhi claims that
Gupta have been removed from the post
due to corruption charges and the minis-
Animal Welfare Board of India is marred by a controversy with try had evidence. Talking to Tehelka, she
Union Minister and animal rights activist Maneka Sanjay Gandhi denied the charge of interfering in the
and the board’s first chairman SP Gupta levelling allegations and functioning of the Board. She challenged
Gupta to prove his charges.
counter allegations of harming animals’ interests against each other, S.P.Gupta — who is a retired IAS of-
reports pawan kumar bansal. ficer of Haryana cadre having wide
connections in RSS as his Gowdham in
Mewat in Haryana — has been visited
by almost every prominent RSS and BJP
leaders of Haryana. He said that allega-
tions of corruption are rubbish. But the
correspondence between Maneka Gan-
dhi and Union Environment, Forests and
Climate Change Minister Dr Harsh Vard-
han and SP Gupta speaks volumes about
the sharp difference between Maneka
and AWBI chairman.
Dr. Harsh Vardhan neither responded
to SMS messages of Tehelka, asking about
the reported resignation of SP Gupta and
Maneka Gandhi’s allegations against
him nor did he respond to repeated calls
made on his mobile phone. His assistant
said that he was busy and promised of
reverting back.
Ever since Gupta joined as first chair-
man of the Board a year ago, Maneka
Gandhi has been raising doubts about
the functioning of the Board accusing it
of having failed in discharge of its duties.
Maneka Gandhi had shot about dozen
letters to Harsh Vardhan and even to
Prime Minister’s Office questioning the
functioning of the Board.
Gupta claimed that the Environment
Ministry had sought the Board’s reply on

Tehelka / 28 february 2019 44 www.Tehelka.com