The Group of Ministers (GoM) on the Bhopal gas tragedy, which held its last meeting here Sunday and will submit its report to the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, on Monday, will recommend filing of a curative petition in the Supreme Court to fix criminal liability, seeking extradition of former UCC chief Warren Anderson and cleaning up toxic material from the Bhopal site.
Sources close to the GoM said the curative petition in the Supreme Court would focus mainly on criminal liability of the accused and seek more stringent charges.
The court had earlier diluted the charges against Union Carbide officials — from the IPC section on culpable homicide not amounting to murder to only criminal negligence.
The GoM headed by the home minister, Mr P. Chidambram, which met for the third successive session on Sunday morning, is learnt to have suggested approaching the United States to seek extradition of UCC’s former CEO to face trial in India. The December 2-3, 1984 gas tragedy left over 15,000 dead and thousands maimed.
The GoM is likely to recommend burying of contaminated soil at the site in a scientific manner, putting the onus on the Madhya Pradesh government to carry out the task, with assistance from the Centre.
Briefing reporters, Mr Chidambaram said the GoM had gone into all aspects of the tragedy.
“We covered all subjects we had identified in the beginning. The minutes are being drawn up, and tomorrow the GoM will meet again at 10 am to finalise the minutes and the conclusions. I expect we will be able to send the report to the Prime Minister tomorrow afternoon.”
Sources said the GoM extensively discussed providing additional compensation to victims as the relief so far was inadequate. The recommendations may also include victims’ classification on the basis of health indices like injuries suffered and aftereffects of exposure to poisonous chemicals.
Showing posts with label Warren Anderson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Warren Anderson. Show all posts
Monday, June 21, 2010
Monday, June 14, 2010
Arjun flew out Warren, says Pranab
The Union finance minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, acknowledged on Sunday that the Congress government in Madhya Pradesh headed by Mr Arjun Singh had taken the decision in December 1984 to send Union Carbide chief Warren Anderson out of Bhopal in view of the deteriorating law and order situation there following the gas disaster.
Mr Mukherjee, conceding that the Congress was in power both in New Delhi and Bhopal at the time, said: “The then Madhya Pradesh chief minister Arjun Singh made a statement published in an English daily, in which Mr Singh had said the law and order situation would have deteriorated in Bhopal... People’s frenzy was high, tempers were running high; the government had no other option than to let Anderson go out of Bhopal.”
Mr Mukherjee, conceding that the Congress was in power both in New Delhi and Bhopal at the time, said: “The then Madhya Pradesh chief minister Arjun Singh made a statement published in an English daily, in which Mr Singh had said the law and order situation would have deteriorated in Bhopal... People’s frenzy was high, tempers were running high; the government had no other option than to let Anderson go out of Bhopal.”
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Judiciary let down gas victims: Moily
The Union law minister, Mr M. Veerappa Moily, on Saturday defended the Centre’s stand on the prosecution of the accused in the Bhopal gas tragedy and blamed the judiciary for delaying the case and letting former Union Carbide chief Warren Anderson get away.
Mr Moily said the Supreme Court verdict had reduced the incident to a “car accident”.
Mr Moily was in fact referring to the statement of the then Chief Justice of India, Mr A.M. Ahmadi, who is blamed for diluting the charges in the case. Mr Ahmadi had said, “There is no concept of vicarious liability. If my driver is driving and meets with a fatal accident, I don’t become liable to be prosecuted under 304-II,” he said.
“The CBI had filed charges under (IPC) Section 304 (II) under which the maximum punishment is 10 years. But the highest court (headed by Mr Ahmadi), in a review petition, converted it to 304 (A) which is actually meant for a car accident, truck accident,” the law minister told reporters in Bengaluru.
Section 304 (II) of the IPC is culpable homicide not amounting to murder while 304(A) is causing death due to negligence.
Mr Moily said the Supreme Court verdict had reduced the incident to a “car accident”.
Mr Moily was in fact referring to the statement of the then Chief Justice of India, Mr A.M. Ahmadi, who is blamed for diluting the charges in the case. Mr Ahmadi had said, “There is no concept of vicarious liability. If my driver is driving and meets with a fatal accident, I don’t become liable to be prosecuted under 304-II,” he said.
“The CBI had filed charges under (IPC) Section 304 (II) under which the maximum punishment is 10 years. But the highest court (headed by Mr Ahmadi), in a review petition, converted it to 304 (A) which is actually meant for a car accident, truck accident,” the law minister told reporters in Bengaluru.
Section 304 (II) of the IPC is culpable homicide not amounting to murder while 304(A) is causing death due to negligence.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Anderson to be brought back, tried, says Moily
A day after the judgment in the Bhopal gas tragedy case, the Union law and justice minister, Mr M. Veerappa Moily, stated that the case against former Union Carbide chief, Warren Anderson, was not over and that he can be brought back and tried. The law minister, however, refused to discuss the implications of the Bhopal gas disaster case verdict on the current debate over the Civil Nuclear Liability Bill.
“Legally, and technically, we can’t say the case against Anderson is over. The case against him is still on. Suppose he can be brought back, he can still be tried,” Dr Moily said. He pointed out that Anderson’s name figured in the chargesheet filed by the CBI in the case.
Asked whether the government was making, or would make, efforts to extradite Mr Anderson, he said he could not comment on the issue.
On whether the Centre could do something in a case where justice came too late and the quantum of punishment was too little, he said he didn’t know whether the Centre could intervene at this stage.
[Meanwhile, in the first meeting of the parliamentary standing committee on science and environment on the nuclear liability bill, its members raised questions over the Rs 500-crore cap proposed on compensation, PTI reported quoting sources. Officials representing the science and technology ministry explained the reasoning behind specifying a “cap” on liability, arguing that it was necessary for the operating company to take insurance cover.]
“I will be working on a standalone law to deal with manmade disasters which should be ready in the next six months,” Dr Moily said.
Meanwhile, in the US, the assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia, Mr Robert Blake said that he hoped the “verdict would help bring some closure to the victims and their families.” The US also hoped that the verdict would not affect the Indian civil nuclear liability bill.
When asked whether the government was having a relook at the Civil Nuclear Liability Bill in the wake of the gas tragedy verdict, he said the matter was already before a parliamentary standing committee and that he “would not like to make a comment on it”.
Meanwhile, sources in the home ministry said it is going to be a tough task getting Anderson extradited to India. “It is difficult to secure his extradition even though we may send fresh requests to the US,” a source said.
Sources said no fresh move has been made so far to seek Mr Anderson’s extradition following the verdict in the Bhopal gas tragedy case.
“Legally, and technically, we can’t say the case against Anderson is over. The case against him is still on. Suppose he can be brought back, he can still be tried,” Dr Moily said. He pointed out that Anderson’s name figured in the chargesheet filed by the CBI in the case.
Asked whether the government was making, or would make, efforts to extradite Mr Anderson, he said he could not comment on the issue.
On whether the Centre could do something in a case where justice came too late and the quantum of punishment was too little, he said he didn’t know whether the Centre could intervene at this stage.
[Meanwhile, in the first meeting of the parliamentary standing committee on science and environment on the nuclear liability bill, its members raised questions over the Rs 500-crore cap proposed on compensation, PTI reported quoting sources. Officials representing the science and technology ministry explained the reasoning behind specifying a “cap” on liability, arguing that it was necessary for the operating company to take insurance cover.]
“I will be working on a standalone law to deal with manmade disasters which should be ready in the next six months,” Dr Moily said.
Meanwhile, in the US, the assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia, Mr Robert Blake said that he hoped the “verdict would help bring some closure to the victims and their families.” The US also hoped that the verdict would not affect the Indian civil nuclear liability bill.
When asked whether the government was having a relook at the Civil Nuclear Liability Bill in the wake of the gas tragedy verdict, he said the matter was already before a parliamentary standing committee and that he “would not like to make a comment on it”.
Meanwhile, sources in the home ministry said it is going to be a tough task getting Anderson extradited to India. “It is difficult to secure his extradition even though we may send fresh requests to the US,” a source said.
Sources said no fresh move has been made so far to seek Mr Anderson’s extradition following the verdict in the Bhopal gas tragedy case.
