Ritwick Dutta, 47, and Rahul Choudhary, 47, have the distinction of being both activists and savvy lawyers at the same time. They have won several landmark verdicts, one of the most significant being against the mining rights given to Vedanta in Odisha.
When not in court, Dutta and Choudhary are campaigners who create awareness in communities about their legal rights in relation to natural resources. In this role as activists, they work through their trust, the Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment (LIFE).
We spoke to Dutta in a long and freewheeling interview when they returned from Stockholm after receiving their award. Here is a small and edited part of that insightful conversation.
published in January-February 2022