Stonehenge activist hits back at threat claims in court

Rajan Naidu and Niamh Lynch deny charges of damaging an ancient protected monument (Andrew Matthews/PA) Andrew Matthews

A 74-year-old Just Stop Oil protester told a court he does not believe he comes across as a "dangerous or threatening person" after being accused of spraying Stonehenge with orange powder. Rajan Naidu gave evidence at Salisbury Crown Court on Thursday, defending his actions alongside co-defendant Niamh Lynch, a 22-year-old Oxford University student.

The pair are accused of using fire extinguishers filled with cornflour, talc and orange dye to spray the ancient monument on 19 June last year. A third defendant, Luke Watson, aged 36, is also charged in connection with the Just Stop Oil protest. All three deny charges of damaging an ancient protected monument and causing a public nuisance.

Defendant's testimony

Naidu told the jury the group had "no intention to do anything reckless or harmful in any sense" to the "sacred" monument, which he described as "one of the wonders of the world". He said their actions were "entirely peaceful" and showed there was "no need to panic".

The court was shown a photograph allegedly depicting Naidu and Lynch sitting in front of the stones with orange substance visible on the monument. Naidu said: "I don't think I scare people, I don't think Niamh scares people and you can see in the way that we behave, there's nothing in that that's scary."

When asked by prosecutor Simon Jones whether he thought direct action was necessary, Naidu replied: "I felt it was, yes, because we've taken the actions which we'd talked about: the lobbying; we've had demonstrations; we've had marches; but still Government policy hasn't changed." He added: "We are still on a highway to hell."

Planning and execution

Naidu said he had initially researched whether the pre-made orange powder was safe during the planning process. He told the court: "I checked the company, it is used in ceremonies and people throw it over one another and it is cleanable." The defendant accepted the prosecution's assertion that the stunt was planned for the day before the solstice to attract "maximum attention".

Video footage shown to the court allegedly shows Lynch and Naidu spraying the orange substance over the monument before two individuals intervene and drag them away. Both protesters were wearing white Just Stop Oil T-shirts when they crossed boundary ropes and trespassed into the area around the monument.

Monument damage and costs

The incident occurred the day before the summer solstice when approximately 15,000 people were due to gather and celebrate at the site. The prosecutor told the court there were concerns that if the substance became wet it could turn into a paste, creating a "pressing need" to clean the stones before the solstice event.

The cost of cleaning the stones was £620, the court heard. Mr Jones described Stonehenge as "arguably the best recognised and architecturally sophisticated, prehistoric stone circle in the world", built some 5,000 years ago.

Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).