Outrage! Bhopal gas leak culprits bailed out
Bhopal: Almost 26 years after the world's worst industrial disaster killed over 15,000 people in Bhopal, a local court on Monday convicted eight former Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) officials in the Bhopal Gas tragedy case and awarded them a maximum of two years imprisonment.
They were also fined Rs 1 lakh each by Chief Judicial Magistrate Mohan P Tiwari, who pronounced the verdict in a packed court room convicting Keshub Mahindra, the non-executive former Chairman of UCIL, and seven others in the case relating to leakage of deadly methyl isocyanate gas in the night intervening December 2 and 3, 1984. But soon after the sentence was awarded all the convicts applied for and got bail for a surety of Rs 25000 each. The then CEO of the Union Carbide Warren Anderson has not been not convicted as he is still absconding. The 89-year-old Anderson, 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.
While announcing the quantum of punishment Tiwari did not mention Anderson.
UCIL was found guilty and fined a paltry sum of Rs 5 lakh for what has been till date world's worst industrial disaster immediately killing an estimated 15,000 people and left over 50,000 others injured. Lakhs of others are still suffering from the after effects of inhaling the deadly gas,
Others found guilty were Vijay Gokhle, the then Managing Director of UCIL, Kishore Kamdar, the then Vice President, JN Mukund, the then Works Manager, SP Choudhary, the then Production Manager, KV Shetty, the then Plant Superintendent and SI Qureshi, the then Production Assistant. Another accused, RB Chaudhary, died during the trial.
Mahindra and six others were present to hear the judgement while Qureshi was represented by his counsel. The sentencing for Qureshi is yet to be announced.
Mahindra is the current chairman of top utility vehicle and tractor maker Mahindra & Mahindra and is the highest ranking person convicted. He had declined a Padma Bhushan in 2002 on the grounds that he was facing trial in the case.
All of them 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 and faces a sentence of up to two years in jail or a fine.
Those convicted can appeal to a higher court.
Civil rights activists fighting for the families of victims of the disaster called the judgement "too little, too late" and accused the prosecution and CBI of failing the victims by diluting the charges.
"It's actually going to be nothing. What is it? We're looking at maximum punishment of two years or a fine. If that's not the biggest joke, then I don't know what is," Rachna Dhingra, a Bhopal rights activist, said. "There's nothing to be happy about."
The verdict in Bhopal applied only to Indian officials of the former Union Carbide's Indian arm while separate cases have been filed against the company and its overseas officials.
Union Carbide had settled its liabilities to the government in 1989 before being bought over by Dow Chemical.
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