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A change in scene

A change in scene in a dramatic move, victims of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy filed a lawsuit against Union Carbide Corporation (ucc), its former chief executive officer (ceo) Warren Anderson and Praxair Incorporated, a ucc-owned subsidiary that still conducts business in India.

The suit, filed on November 15 in New York's southern district court, argues, "The defendants are liable for fraud and civil contempt for their total failure to comply with the lawful orders of the courts of both the us and India.' In October 1991, the Supreme Court (sc) of India had ruled that criminal investigations and prosecution of ucc should proceed. The sc also ordered that failure to adhere to the ruling would constitute "manifest injustice'. B L Wadhera, a prominent sc lawyer, says, "It is a good legal strategy. The ceo evaded arrest warrants issued by Indian courts and thus the litigants had to go to us courts. Anderson has to now report as he is a us citizen and also a property holder in the us.'

Kenneth McCallion, lead counsel for the litigants, charged in his complaint that "Union Carbide (since) demonstrated a reckless and depraved indifference to human life in the design, operation and maintenance of the Union Carbide of India Ltd (ucil) facility.' Sean Clancy, director of corporate communications for ucc, told a news service, "We have not reviewed the suit yet, but all personal injury and related claims such as the loss of income and property damage were settled in 1989 when the ucc and ucil agreed to pay us $470 million to the government of India for the victims, in a final settlement of all civil litigations. This settlement was initially approved by the Supreme Court of India and then upheld by that body in 1991.'

On the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984, methyl isocyanate (mic) leaked from ucil's plant in Bhopal killing more than 5,000 people. Abdul Jabbar, convenor of the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Udyog Sangathan, which has been fighting for the rights of the victims, says, "This is the only way we can nab the ceo and the company that killed so many people.' Immediately after the tragedy, when legal proceedings were initiated in the Bhopal district court, the company officials defied all court summons. Finally, the Indian government sought Interpol's help to locate Anderson. Failing to nail him, the chief judicial magistrate (cjm) of Bhopal proclaimed Anderson an absconder.

Though the settlement between the ucil and the Indian government granted immunity to the company and Anderson, it was revoked by the sc in October 1991. This resulted in issuance of a non-bailable arrest warrant against the former ceo. Subsequently, shares of ucc and its Indian subsidiary were attached by the cjm. Sadly, even after seven years, the Indian government has failed to take any step towards the extradition of Anderson.

As the legal battle takes a new turn, the survivors continue to suffer. The medical fraternity is still in the dark about the type of gases which leaked on that fateful night. The ucc withheld the information calling it a "trade secret'.

The government of India also conducted 25 project studies on the health status of the victims. Ironically, the results have also been declared official secrets. In 1985, the Indian Council of Medical Research (icmr) conducted 25 studies on the effects of the gas and covered almost 80,000 victims, but their findings were never published. By 1991, the government discontinued 16 ongoing projects. In December 1994, the government wound up the rest. Deprived of these vital results for the last 15 years, doctors have been prescribing only symptomatic drugs that provide temporary relief. The result: each victim has already consumed more than 10 kg of steroids as part of the symptomatic treatment since 1985; women continue to have abortions and children still display genetic deformities.

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