HC upholds notice to Dow in Bhopal disaster case

22 Oct 2012

1

A case pertaining to the worst industrial calamity in world history, the Bhopal gas disaster of 1984, continues to drag on in Indian courts long after Union Carbide Corp, the perpetrating company, has been bought and sold.

All of Carbide's senior officials are probably beyond the reach of Indian law, including chief executive Warren Anderson who is reported to be senile by now.

But procedures continue. The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Saturday denied a petition filed by Dow Chemical Pvt Ltd – which bought over Union Carbide in 2001 – seeking dismissal of a show cause notice issued in 2005 in relation to the leakage of lethal gas from its Bhopal factory in Madhya Pradesh.

A magistrate's court in Bhopal had issued a show cause notice to Dow Chemical in January 2005 in response to a public interest litigation filed in 2005 by NGOs seeking more answerability for the thousands killed and many more diseased for life by the leakage of methyl isocyanate gas from the Carbide plant.

Dow Chemical International Pvt Ltd has made it clear that liabilities related to the disaster were outside the purview of its purchase agreement with Carbide; and US courts have upheld its stand.
Some NGOs have not given up on their attempts to make Dow answerable for the disaster; and many people think that this is justified since the government and the Supreme Court under-reacted at the time.

On Saturday, a plea to close the case was dismissed by Justice G S Solanki of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.

Business History Videos

History of hovercraft Part 3 | Industry study | Business History

History of hovercraft Part 3...

Today I shall talk a bit more about the military plans for ...

By Kiron Kasbekar | Presenter: Kiron Kasbekar

History of hovercraft Part 2 | Industry study | Business History

History of hovercraft Part 2...

In this episode of our history of hovercraft, we shall exam...

By Kiron Kasbekar | Presenter: Kiron Kasbekar

History of Hovercraft Part 1 | Industry study | Business History

History of Hovercraft Part 1...

If you’ve been a James Bond movie fan, you may recall seein...

By Kiron Kasbekar | Presenter: Kiron Kasbekar

History of Trams in India | Industry study | Business History

History of Trams in India | ...

The video I am presenting to you is based on a script writt...

By Aniket Gupta | Presenter: Sheetal Gaikwad

view more
View details about the software product Informachine News Trackers