The Supreme Court on August 22 set aside a 2017 National Green Tribunal (NGT) order that held the Art of Living Foundation responsible for environmental damage to the Yamuna floodplains during its 2016 World Culture Festival. The court found no direct evidence linking the event to the damage claimed by the tribunal. It also ordered the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to refund ₹5 crore deposited by the foundation as environmental compensation.

A bench of Justices Satish Chandra Sharma and N Kotiswar Singh ruled that an individual or organisation can be held liable for environmental damage only when a direct connection exists between the activity in question and the harm caused. The bench found no direct evidence to establish such a link between the Art of Living event and the alleged damage to the Yamuna floodplain ecosystem.

The World Culture Festival was held on the Yamuna floodplains in Delhi from March 11 to 13, 2016. The Art of Living Foundation has organised a three-day event through its associated entity, Vyakti Vikas Kendra India. Before the event, the NGT had allowed the festival to take place while asking the foundation to deposit ₹5 crore as interim environmental compensation.

The NGT had said the amount would be adjusted against any final compensation after assessing the environmental damage caused to the floodplains. The event later became the subject of a long legal battle over its alleged impact on the ecologically sensitive Yamuna floodplain.

In December 2017, the NGT held the Art of Living responsible for the damage and directed DDA to use the ₹5 crore deposited by the foundation for the restoration of affected floodplain. The tribunal also ordered a further assessment of the cost required for the restoration work.

The Supreme Court has now overturned that liability finding. The bench said the material before it did not establish a direct connection between the World Culture Festival and the environmental damage alleged by the NGT. The ruling removes the liability imposed on the Art of Living Foundation under the 2017 order.

The Supreme Court also criticised the role of the DDA in protecting the Yamuna floodplains. It observed that the authority had failed to properly safeguard the ecologically sensitive area. The court also said that the DDA's conduct in allowing the event on the floodplains was improper.

However, the bench made it clear that the legality of the DDA's permission for the event was not part of the appeal before it. The court therefore did not examine that issue while deciding whether the Art of Living Foundation could be held liable for the environmental damage.

Along with setting aside the NGT's liability order, the Supreme Court directed the DDA to return the full ₹5 crore deposited by Vyakti Vikas Kendra India. The amount had remained with the authority since it was deposited as interim environmental compensation before the 2016 festival.

The court, however, did not stop the restoration work on the Yamuna floodplains. It directed the DDA to continue the rehabilitation and restoration measures that the NGT had ordered earlier. This means that the environmental restoration of the affected area will continue even though the Art of Living Foundation is no longer held liable for the alleged damage.

The ruling comes nearly a decade after the World Culture Festival was held on the Yamuna floodplains. The NGT's 2017 order had made the Art of Living responsible for the damage and directed the use of the deposited compensation for restoration.

The Supreme Court's decision now provides major relief to the Art of Living Foundation and Vyakti Vikas Kendra India. At the same time, the court's observations fix responsibility of public authorities to protect environmentally sensitive areas. The DDA will have to continue the restoration work despite the refund of the ₹5 crore compensation.

The judgment also underlines the need to establish a clear and direct connection before holding an individual or organisation liable for environmental harm. In this case, the Supreme Court found that such a connection had not been established between the Art of Living's 2016 event and the alleged damage to the Yamuna floodplain.