Indian court overturns Greenpeace operating ban

The Madras High Court in Chennai on Friday saved Greenpeace from losing its right to operate in the country by suspending a government order, said the environmental organization.

The Indian government had revoked the NGO's license to operate in the country by claiming it had massaged its accounts.

The government's allegations were "ridiculous," said Greenpeace activist Priya Pillai in a statement. All donations were published on the NGO's website for everyone to see.

According to Pillai, the Interior Ministry in New Delhi was trying to limit freedom of speech.

In a leaked secret service report, the Indian government believed that NGOs like Greenpeace were harming the country's economic development as they were opposed to industrial and infrastructure projects.

Over the past year and a half, courts in India have decided six times in favor of Greenpeace.

The organization had never stopped working in India, according to Greenpeace activist Hozefa Merchant.

av/bw (AFP, AP)