This is appalling. BHopal gas tragedy claimed 15,000 deaths and over 2,00,000 permanent diabailities. Verdict indicts 7 poeple with 2 yr imprisionment, all 7 got bail after 6 hr of this extraordinary verdict. The 8th accused died during the judicial process, which ran for just 23 years. There is no mention of any associate of Union carbide, in spite of clear evidences of negligence on its part.
On Dec 2-3, mortality reached 8000 within afew hours of leak, which happend at midnight. 7000 more died within next few weeks. Thousands disabilities are on record. No one below the age of 18 was registered. This section of affected population is estimated to numbered at around 200,000. It took 2days to start immediate relief.
Mr Anderson(Chairman of union Carbide) was arrested immediately for 6 hrs, to ensure his safe passage from public outrage. 6 hrs later, he was flown out of the country in a "Government plane". The company was warned by american inspectors of the kind of negligence that ultimately led this mass murder, after 3 years. Investigation reports says, employees who refused to go by unsafe porocesses established were company, 70% of them were fined for such audacity. Methyl-Iso- Cynide was a cheaper chemical to produce carbaryl, Union Carbide's competitors used other chemicals that were costly but safe. The acitivities of indian subsidiary of Union carbide was equally dubious. Plant was significantly understaff and run by untrained workers.
Not sure, who all should be indicted, but the perpetrators who escaped are easy to count. There can not be a bigger shame that UC, it's indian subsidiary and government of India escaped without a mention of them in the verdict.
All I pray is for the victims to rest in peace!!! Justice is beyond the reach of my prayers.
I donno where we are heading !!
ReplyDeleteThere's lot of influence of bureaucracy n political power at the district level courts... the judgement cant be called final... bt one thing is for sure...judiciary in india has thousand colors...u can get an even more embarrassing color at HC n SC.
ReplyDeleteThis is the apathy of our stupid Judicial System. I cannot understand whether we need to put an 85 year old person in prison or to let him free.. But 2 years for killing 15000 people, is nonsense. BTW, there were more than 1,00,000 people who were affected. And the owner of the company is relaxing happily in the US. Even when the tragedy happened, all laws were ignored for the Indian establishment whereas the US establishment then had high security for the people. Dont know if our f***ing judicial system will change in my lifetime...
ReplyDelete