0 Case Against Anderson Not Closed

By Bhopal Rock

0

Case Against Anderson Not Closed

Posted in

Law Minister Veerappa Moily on Tuesday said the case against former Union Carbide chief Warren Anderson in connection with the Bhopal gas tragedy was not closed.
"As far as Anderson is concerned, the case is not closed," Moily said.
He said the name of Anderson figured in the chargesheet filed by the CBI in the case.
"The CBI has filed chargesheet. The courts then frame charges. There is one person here who has not responded to the
summons or replied to the charges. He has absconded and was declared a proclaimed offender," he said.
"That does not mean that the case against him (Anderson) is closed," Moily said.
The Minister had on Monday said that the government will fast-track the Bhopal gas tragedy case in the High Court as it
has learnt "big lessons" from the verdict and could go in for a stand-alone legislation to ensure that the culprits in such
incidents are brought to book effectively.
Nearly 26 years after world's worst industrial disaster left over 15,000 dead, former Union Carbide India Chairman
Keshub Mahindra and six others were on Monday sentenced to two years imprisonment. The outcome of the case came under attack from civil rights activists and political parties.
89-year-old Anderson, the then Chairman of Union Carbide Corporation of USA, who lives in the United States, appeared to have gone scot-free for the present as he is still an absconder and did not subject himself to trial. There was no word about him in the judgement of the Bhopal court. 

0 Bhopal gas tragedy: Bail granted to Mahindra, 7 others

By Bhopal Rock

0

Bhopal gas tragedy: Bail granted to Mahindra, 7 others

Posted in

The sentencing came hours after a Bhopal court convicted the eight accused, including former Union Carbide of India Chairman Keshub Mahindra, in the Bhopal gas tragedy case.

Chief Judicial Magistrate Mohan P Tiwari pronounced the verdict in a packed court room convicting 85-year-old Mahindra, and seven others in the case relating to leakage of deadly methyl isocyanate gas in Dec 1984.

They were held guilty under Sections 304-A (causing death by negligence), 304-II (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 336, 337 and 338 (gross negligence) of the Indian Penal Code.

However, there was no word on Warren Anderson, the then Chairman of Union Carbide Corporation of the US, who was declared an absconder after he did not subject himself to trial in the case that began 23 years ago.Others found guilty are Vijay Gokhle, the then Managing Director of UCIL, Kishore Kamdar, the then Vice President, J N Mukund, the then Works Manager, S P Choudhary, the then Production Manager, K V Shetty, the then Plant Superintendent and S I Quershi, the then Production Assistant.

Except Quershi, all the seven others, including Mahindra, were present in the court. Another accused R B Roy Choudhary, the then former Assistant Works Manager of UCIL, Mumbai, had died during the course of the trial.

A total of 178 prosecution witnesses were examined in the trial and 3008 documents were produced while eight defence witnesses deposed in the court.
 
Anderson, who did not face trial, is based in the US. The companies-- USA and Union Carbide Eastern, Hong Kong --were also not represented in the trial.

An FIR in the tragedy was filed on December 3, 1984 and the case was transferred to CBI on December 6, 1984. The CBI filed the chargesheet after investigation on December 1, 1987.

Subsequently, a local court had framed charges against the accused.

CBI counsel C Sahay had argued that defective design of UCIL and its poor maintenance resulted into the tragedy that had left 2259 dead immediately after the mishap. The lingering effects of the highly poisonous methyl isocyanate killed over 20,000 people.

Sahay contended that Union Carbide Corporation, USA, in its survey of the factory in 1982 had found serious safety and maintenance lapses on nearly 10 counts.

The prosecution argued that even after UCC experts' team visit to the factory, adequate safety measures and maintenance works were not undertaken in UCIL.

A Central team, which visited the UCIL plant post-tragedy in 1984, also found lapses in safety norms and maintenance, the counsel had said.

Refuting the charge that lapses in maintenance and safety norms had led to the tragedy, defence counsel D Prasad and Amit Desai had argued that all steps were followed to keep the UCIL's Bhopal factory in a proper shape.

The defence had also refuted the charge that a team of Union Carbide Corporation, USA, which visited the plant following the death of a worker here in 1982, had found any fault in the unit.

The defence had contended that the UCIL was so much concerned on the safety front that after the death of Mohammed Ashraf Khan, it had reported the matter to the UCC, USA, which had carried out a safety audit.

Reacting after the verdict, Union Law Minister Veerappa Moily said that delay of justice is equivalent to denial of justice.

"Of course, it is too delayed. It is most unfortunate that it has taken that much of time to give the verdict and we need to address that issue," said Moily.


 

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/news/india/bhopal-gas-tragedy-bail-granted-to-mahindra-7-others-30321.php?u=1551&cp