Sri Sri's Guest Of Honour, Mugabe, Drops Out Though He Is In Delhi

New Delhi: The humongous event led by spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar will begin in Delhi tomorrow, amid controversies about whether it will damage the fragile ecosystem of the River Yamuna, but Robert Mogabe, President of Zimbabwe, has decided to turn around from the capital and fly back home because of "substantial inadequacies in protocol and security arrangements".

Mr Mogabe was to serve as the guest of honour at the three-day "World Culture Festival" organised by Sri Sri's Art of Living Foundation. A press statement pointed out that "a number of leaders... including those from the host country, have also withdrawn their participation."

President Pranab Mukherjee dropped out of the event earlier this week amid growing concerns about safety arrangements and potential environmental damage at the 1,000-acre venue on the Yamuna floodplains.

"Mugabe would cut a forlorn figure because he would stick out as the only high-profile Head of State at the World Culture Festival (WCF) organised by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar of Art of Living," reported a news site in Zimbabwe. 

Yesterday, the National Green Tribunal allowed the event to go ahead but asked for the organisers to deposit an initial five-crore fine (with the probability of more to follow after the event); the judges also made a series of remarks censuring the organisers and various government departments and ministries for failing to take enough precautions to protect the environment.

Sri Sri has firmly rebutted allegations by activists that construction at the venue -including a giant stage for thousands of performers from around the world - and  a vast audience running into lakhs of people could hurt the Yamuna. He has committed to his foundation creating a biodiversity park after the event concludes -an offer which was made part of the court's conditional permission.