New Delhi, June 8 (IANS): The union home ministry on Monday said Greenpeace International member Aaron Gray-Block was barred from entering India "because he was blacklisted by the government".

Rejecting the non-governmental organisation's claim that no formal reason was given by the authorities concerned, the ministry said the government held the right to allow or disallow entry to a person into the country.

"Government has a provision, if someone has done something which is not acceptable to the law of the land, he or she would not be allowed to enter again," a home ministry official told IANS, adding that since Gray-Block was already blacklisted so his entry was barred.

Earlier in the day, Greenpeace said that no formal reason was given by the immigration officials for the decision.

Another Greenpeace India activist Priya Pillai was stopped from flying to London in January. However, on March 12, Pillai was granted relief by the Delhi High Court which quashed the lookout circular issued against her.

On April 9, Home Minister Rajnath Singh blocked Greenpeace India's bank accounts for which the environmental group had to seek interim relief from the Delhi High Court.

On May 27 the Delhi High Court allowed NGO Greenpeace India to operate two of its domestic accounts, frozen by the central government.