Who was Amit Jethwa?

Amit Jethwa (1975 – 20 July 2010) was an Indian environmentalist and social worker, active in the Gir Forest area near Junagadh, Gujarat. He had filed several court cases against illegal mining in the protected area, naming Bharatiya Janata Party member of parliament, Dinu Solanki as one of the respondents. On 20 July 2010 he was shot dead by two assailants on a motorbike. On September 6, Dinu Solanki’s nephew Shiva Solanki has been arrested for allegedly having ordered gun-for-hire Pachan Silva and one other to commit the killing.

As the president of the Gir Nature Youth Club at Khamba, Amit Jethwa had been active in fighting against encroachment of forests and poaching. He was also instrumental in the five year jail term of Bollywood actor Salman Khan for shooting an endangered Chinkara deer, a case that concluded after being pursued by activists for eight years. He also highlighted the use of a Chinkara deer in a scene in the movie Lagaan and opposed a Bhuj court decision which stayed an inquiry against the actor-director Aamir Khan.

He campaigned vigorously against corruption among officers of the Indian Forest Service, and opposed malafide application of article 356 of the. In 2007, he drew attention to the mysterious deaths of lions in Gir Forest including three that were shot within a few hundred meters of the Babariya forest guard outpost. Claiming that “Such a thing cannot be possible without support of some forest officials”, Jethwa sought the suspension of IFS officer Bharat Pathak. The incident ultimately led to the uncovering of a large lion poaching gang. He later campaigned against shifting of lions to the Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh. His efforts were often blocked by forest officials by charging him with offences such as photographing a dead lion and trespassing.

In 2007, Jethwa contested the state assembly elections, but lost.

In 2008, Jethwa pursued the Right to Information Act for addressing grievances, and conducted workshops on the procedure to file requests under RTI to prevent corrupt practices and other mal-administration.

Since 2008, Jethwa had filed six requests under the Right to Information Act, probing the activities of an illegal mining lobby operating in the protected forest area just outside the Gir Forest National Park. At the time, Jethwa was badly beaten up by goons, allegedly from Solanki’s party.

In mid 2010, he filed a Public interest litigation in the Gujarat High Court, citing evidence found, and naming local BJP politician Dinu Solanki and several relatives, for involvement in the illegal mining in the Gir Forest. He sought directives from the court for stopping power supply to all such mining centers.

In June 2010, a raid was conducted by the police and geology departments, and a number of mining equipment were seized. However, the equipment was subsequently stolen back. Since BJP was the ruling party in the state, he appealed that the matter be investigated by an independent ombudsman or Lokayukta, a constitutional position that had been lying vacant in Gujarat since 2003. He had recently moved court to seek a judicial order to the state government to fill this post.

On 20 July, shortly after the case against Solanki was filed, Jethwa had gone to meet his lawyer near the Gujarat High court in Ahmedabad. As he was leaving the Satyamev complex, two assailants on a motorcycle shot him at close range with a country-made pistol. Despite being injured, he apparently tried to detain the assailants. Though they were able to get away, he was able to grab a kurta (longshirt) worn by one of the murderers; this had a laundry tag leading to Junagadh. A police car was parked outside the court, and two policemen came out on hearing the single gunshot but failed to pursue the criminals, who escaped on foot.

Jethwa’s family has alleged that he was under constant threat from Dinu Solanki for interfering with the powerful and illegal mining lobby in Saurashtra. At one point Solanki threatened him in front of a large gathering at a meeting in Kodinar, the area Solanki hails from. Jethwa had recently filed an affidavit at the Kodinar police station seeking protection and stating that he would be killed by Solanki. His father recently received a threatening phone call from Dinu Solanki.

A number of civil bodies and NGOs held a vigil in Ahmedabad on 21 July, seeking an independent investigation.

Amit Jethwa was chosen posthumously for the Satish Shetty RTI Gallantry Award for 2010 by National RTI Forum, a voluntary organisation working in the field of transparency.