Shame shame to supreme court of USA & INDIA

[rna...@yahoo.com]

S.O.S - e - Clarion Of Dalit - Weekly Newspaper On Web
Working For The Rights & Survival Of The Oppressed

Editor: NAGARAJ.M.R… Special Issue…… 08/06/2010

Editorial : Shame Shame to Supreme Court of India & Supreme Court of
USA

The Final Verdict is out in Bhopal Gas Tragedy . This kind of
Injustice can only happen in banana republics , where rich crooks are
protected by authorities & courts. SHAME SHAME to supreme court of
India , supreme court of USA & Government of USA , for practicing
double standards in enforcement of law & justice.

Double standards of supreme court of India
http://sites.google.com/site/sosevoiceforjustice/is-the-supreme-court-of-india-deaf-dumb-blind

PIL Appeal & Show Cause Notice to Supreme Court of India
http://sites.google.com/site/eclarionofdalit/pil-appeal-show-cause-notice-to-supreme-court-of-india



Your’s sincerely,
Nagaraj.M.R.

Shame! India sold its dead cheap
Shobhan Saxena,

Around 22,000 dead. More than 1,20,000 injured. Rs 1 lakh for each
body. Rs 25,000 for every poisoned lung and damaged heart and blinded
eyes. 26 years of long wait. And just 2 years in jail for the men who
committed the worst crime against the people of this country. And this
mockery of justice after such a long wait. Twenty six years after 40
tonnes of lethal gas seeped into the lungs of Bhopal, families of some
17,000 men, women and children are still waiting for the so-called
compensation. Thousands more are still waiting to be accepted as
victims. People of Bhopal are still drinking toxic water poisoned by
Union Carbide in December 1984. And the main culprit is living life
kingsize in a mansion in New York.

No country sells its people so cheap.
No country sells its poor so cheap.
No country sells its dead so cheap.

Today – on the day of Bhopal disaster judgment -- if there is a failed
state in the world, it’s India. It’s not Iraq. It’s not Somalia. It’s
not Sudan. It’s India.

India – its government, judiciary and corporates – accepted the
ridiculous amount of $450 million dollars for the people killed and
maimed by methyl isocyanate leaked from the Union Carbide factory in
the heart of Bhopal three decades ago. In all these years, the poor
victims have done everything they could to get justice and
compensation. They have cried and died on streets, sat hungry and
faced police lathis on roads and filed court cases in the hope that
one day they will get justice.

Today, they were denied justice. Today, they were told that they
should be happy with the peanuts thrown at them by Union Carbide.
Today, India proved once again that it doesn’t care for its poor.
Today, it was proved all over again that those who do politics in the
name of poor in this country, always rule for the rich.

What justification does CBI have for not being able to produce Warren
Anderson in court. The chairman of UC at the time of the gas attack
(it was not an accident, the gas leak was caused because of cost-
cutting steps taken by him) on the people of Bhopal, Anderson was
arrested and later released on bail. He ran off to US in 1986 and we
have not been able to find him or ask the US to extradite Anderson to
India. Why? The government says it doesn’t know where Anderson is.
What a lie. What a shame.

Last year, on a balmy July day, a bunch of victims danced on the
streets after hearing news that the Chief Judicial Magistrate of
Bhopal had ordered the CBI to arrest Anderson and produce him before
the court without delay. The court also asked the CBI to explain what
steps it had taken since 2002 to enforce the warrant and extradition
of Anderson, who was declared an absconder in 1992. Though the CBI and
US government failed to track Anderson, supporters of Bhopal victims
traced him to the elite New York neighbourhood of the Hamptons. In
2003, Greenpeace activists paid Anderson a visit at his home and
handed him an arrest warrant.

Today’s ridiculous judgment in Bhopal didn’t say anything on Anderson
as he is a “proclaimed offender”. This status suits him fine because
he doesn’t have to bother about coming to India and answer some very
crucial questions:

*Why did Union Carbide not apply the same safety standards at its
plant in India as it operated at a sister plant in West Virginia, US?

*On the night of the disaster, why did the six safety measures
designed to prevent a gas leak fail to function?

*Why was the safety siren, intended to alert the people living close
to the factory, turned off?

The victims have always alleged that Bhopal happened because of
negligence by the Union Carbide and that was caused by cost-cutting
measures taken by Anderson. Is it because of this reason that Anderson
has been 'hiding' in the US?

A criminal has a reason to hide, but what reason does our government
have to let a mass murderer like Anderson go scot-free. Is it because
he is an American? Can an American come to India kill people in this
country and run away with no consequences? That seems to be the case.
We are still struggling to get a chance to question David Headley
Coleman, an American citizen responsible for the worst terror attack
on an Indian city in 2008. Will we succeed in getting Headley
extradited to India? No way. Never.

Today, India proved that it doesn’t really care for its people,
particularly if they have been slaughtered by powerful people from the
most powerful nation in the world. Instead of taking on America and
fighting for justice for its poor, India is more than happy to sell
its dead cheap.

Rs 1 lakh for every body. Rs 25,000 for every blinded eye. This is the
cost of poor life in a failed state.

Bhopal gas tragedy: 8 found guilty, get bail

BHOPAL: The seven Indian Union Carbide India Ltd (UCIL) officials
convicted in the 26-year-old Bhopal gas tragedy case have been granted
bail and released on submission of a surety of Rs 25,000 by a trial
court in Bhopal, according to a Times Now report.

Earlier on Monday, eight accused, one of whom is deceased, were
sentenced to two years in prison for causing death due to negligence.

Reacting to the development, representatives of the tragedy's victims
and their families who have been protesting outside the court, said
they would approach the Madhya Pradesh High Court to allow the
slapping of more stringent charges against all those accused in the
case.

The Magistrate court in Bhopal on Monday convicted all eight Indians
accused in the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy case. A Rs 500,000 fine has
been imposed on UCIL.

Toxic gas leak from a Union Carbide pesticide factory in 1984 killed
thousands and left an unspecified number battered with diseases and
deformity - the toll of victims is still rising.

Despite Monday's conviction, there is little closure for victims.
Legal experts have alleged that there was an attempt to cover up the
case. It took the CBI three long years to file a chargesheet that many
believed was weak. Then in 1996 the charges were watered down making
all sections carry the maximum punishment of 2 years.

The charges were also all bailable and with the prime accused in the
case - former Union Carbide (USA) chairman Warren Anderson still on
the run and unlikely to present himself in Indian court, there is
little hope that justice will be served.

Anderson: The man who got away in Bhopal gas case
Chidanand Rajgahtta,

Long before British Petroleum, there was Union Carbide; long before
David Headley aka Daood Gilani, there was Warren Anderson.

As legal proceedings in the Bhopal gas tragedy meanders on, its
torturous path over 26 years a travesty of justice to many, two
principals associated with the disaster have faded from sight even as
newer culprits in most recent outrages (BP oil spill and Mumbai's
26/11 massacre) are in the spotlight.

Union Carbide, the American chemical company that became notorious for
the world's worst industrial disaster, is now a wholly owned
subsidiary of the Dow Chemical Company. And Warren Anderson, Union
Carbide CEO, at the time of the disaster and until his retirement in
1986, declared an absconder and a fugitive from justice by an Indian
court, lives in relative anonymity and seclusion in Long Island, New
York.

Both have washed their hands off the Bhopal disaster. Union Carbide
says its officials were not part of this case since the charges were
divided long ago into a separate case. "Furthermore, Union Carbide and
its officials are not subject to the jurisdiction of the Indian court
since they did not have any involvement in the operation of the plant,
which was owned and operated by Union Carbide India Ltd, (UCIL)" a
spokesman for the company told Wall Street Journal.

The company maintains that the Bhopal plant was designed, owned,
operated and managed on a day-to-day basis by UCIL and its employees
and all those convicted are the "appropriate people from UCIL —
officers and those who actually ran the plant on a daily basis have
appeared to face charges."

"I want you to know that Union Carbide continues to have the utmost
respect and sympathy for the victims of the tragedy and their
families. Union Carbide did all it could to help the victims and their
families from Day 1 right up through the settlement with the Indian
government," the spokesman added.

Anderson isn't talking. He hasn't spoken on record on the subject for
nearly two decades. Now nearing 90, he lives with his wife Lillian in
a million-dollar home in the swish Long Island neighbourhood of
Bridgehampton, avoiding social contact and hiding from the media and
activists who have struggled long to bring him to justice.

When Casey Harrell, a Greenpeace activist, visited his home in 2002 to
serve him a warrant, he refused to identify himself and pretended to
be someone else.

A neighbour also tried to throw Harrell off-track saying he was
someone else and blurting out that he had nothing to do with the
Bhopal disaster (even though Harrell hadn't mentioned anything about
the disaster).

Bhopal gas case: SC shot down move to slap tough charges
Dhananjay Mahapatra ,


NEW DELHI: It will be unkind to blame the trial court for handing out
mild punishments to the Bhopal gas leak accused whose collective
negligence caused an industrial catastrophe. For, the court's decision
to frame charges against them under Section 304-II of IPC — that
attracts a maximum jail term of 10 years — was set aside by the
Supreme Court itself on September 13, 1996.

Appearing for CBI, then additional solicitor general Altaf Ahmed had
argued before the SC that the accused knew about the potential danger
of the lethal gas escaping and hence should be tried under the
stringent provision.

"There was ample material produced by the prosecution in support of
the chargesheet which indicated that all the accused shared common
criminal knowledge about potential danger of escape of the lethal gas
— MIC — both on account of the defective plant which was operated
under their control and supervision at Bhopal and also on account of
the operational shortcomings detected by the Varadarajan expert
committee," Ahmed had said in court.

However, a bench comprising then Chief Justice A M Ahmedi and Justice
S B Majmudar disagreed. "On our finding that the material pressed in
service by the prosecution does not indicate even prima facie that the
accused were guilty of an offence of culpable homicide and, therefore,
Section 304-II was out of the picture, Section 304-A on this very
finding can straightaway get attracted at least prima facie," the
bench said. It then quashed the charge framed against the accused
under Section 304-II.

As legal experts decried Monday's verdict and activists involved in
rehabilitation of the victims termed it a mockery of justice, TOI
tracked down Altaf Ahmed in Dubai. Ahmed expressed disappointment, not
with the trial court verdict but with the SC's 1996 judgment.

"The dilution of the charges against the accused persons in 1996 by
the Supreme Court was very sad and in my perception not justified," he
said.

And why did he feel so, when the SC had gone through the evidence and
CBI's chargesheet in detail while giving its 40-page judgment? Ahmed
felt the apex court had erred by converting the charges from Section
304-II to Section 304A (death caused by a rash and negligent act,
under which the BMW hit-and-run accused was tried). "The management of
Union Carbide knew that necessary safety measures were not in place
and a leak of the kind that resulted in the tragedy was a distinct
possibility," he said.


END 25 YEARS OF INJUSTICE TO PEOPLE OF BHOPAL

Shortly before midnight on 2 December 1984, thousands of tonnes of
deadly chemicals leaked from Union Carbide’s pesticide plant in
Bhopal, central India. Around half a million people were exposed.
Between 7,000 and 10,000 people died in the immediate aftermath and a
further 15,000 over the next 20 years.
Nearly 25 years later, the factory site has not been cleaned up. More
than 100,000 people continue to suffer from ongoing health problems.
Efforts to provide rehabilitation – both medical care and measures to
address the socio-economic effects of the leak – have fallen way
short
of what is needed.
Many of those affected are still waiting for adequate compensation
and
the full facts of the leak and its impact have never been properly
investigated. No one has ever been held to account for what happened
at Bhopal and efforts by survivors’ organizations to use the Indian
and US court systems to see justice done and gain adequate redress
have so far been unsuccessful.
Bhopal is not just a human rights tragedy from the last century – it
is a human rights travesty today. The legacy of Bhopal persists
because the people of Bhopal have never been able to claim their
rights. Moreover, the negative impacts of the leak are affecting new
generations. Studies have shown how the exposure to the toxic gas
causes long-term effects, which can continue in children born in gas-
exposed families.
For 25 years the Indian government has failed the people of Bhopal.
Promises have been repeatedly broken and no adequate action has ever
been taken to address the impacts of the gas leak.
No company can be allowed to evade responsibility for the impacts of
its operations. Union Carbide must be held to account for what
happened at Bhopal. Dow Chemicals, which now owns Union Carbide, must
cooperate fully with the Indian government and the courts in India to
ensure justice is done and the site is fully cleaned up.
BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDY 1984 -Bhopal, India

At the first instance the Government of India failed to ensure that
Union carbide India Limited (U.C.I.L) has installed proper safety
measures and fully implemented it in practice, at it's plant in
Bhopal. The Government of Madhyapradesh through it's labour
department, factory inspectorate & pollution control board failed to
enforce safety practices & environmental protection. In turn, the
U.C.I.L didn't install in full, the safety measures being followed by
it's parent company union carbide corporation (U.C.C) at it's
Various plants in the U.S.A. The U.C.I.L. didn't give community
training to residents of nearby localities, to cope up with
emergencies ie. Industrial accidents. U.C.I.L gave a go - by to
safety
practices, as it treated Indian lives as cheap. The government of
Madhya pradesh instead of shifting slum dwellers around U.C.I.L, to
other safe place, gave them legal title deeds just months before the
tragedy in 1984.
Now, refer the following:-
1. After the accident at it's U.C.I.L. plant at Bhopal, India in
1984,
when the U.C.C. Chairman/C.E.O. came over to Bhopal from U.S.A to
visit the accident site, local police arrested him on the charges of
manslaughter. However, the Government of India got him released.
2. In 1985, Government of India enacted "Bhopal claims Act" took-
away
the right of appeal of all the Gas tragedy victims & declared itself
as the sole representative of all victims. This said act itself is
violative of victim's fundamental & human rights. The
victims didn't choose Government of India as it's representative
under
will, agreement, trust or pleasure.
3. The paradox of this "Bhopal claims Act" is that, Government of
India which is also a party to the crime, tragedy, itself is the
appellant. The appellant (Petitioner),defendant are Government of
India, Prosecution by Government of India & Judged by Government of
India.
4. In 1989, when an appeal about interim compensation to be paid by
the U.C.I.L to all the victims was being heard in the apex court, the
supreme court of India without giving a chance to the victims to make
their point, without consulting them, without making a proper
assessment of damages/losses, gave an arbitrary figure as verdict &
dropped all civil, criminal proceedings against U.C.C.&U.C.I.L
5. In the same year 1989, the Government of India without consulting
the victims of disaster, without making proper assessment of damages/
losses, negotiated a settlement with the U.C.C. and in turn gave full
legal immunity to U.C.C.& U.C.I.L from civil &
Criminal proceedings
6. Even the Government of India didn't present the case of victim's-
gas tragedy victims, properly before the U.S.courts, where the U.C.C
is based. All these premeditated acts only benefited the criminals-
U.C.C&UCIL. Are not the supreme court of India & Government of India,
here to safeguard Indians and to safeguard Justice?
After all these crimes, the Government of India failed to distribute
compensation in time to victims. It has failed even to provide safe
drinking water to the residents near the accident site, It has failed
to provide comprehensive medical care to the victims, till
date . It has even failed to get the accident site cleared off toxic
wastes either by the culprit management or by it self, that too after
20 years. The very presence of these toxic wastes since 20 years is
further contaminating, polluting the environment and taking toll of
more victims.
Particularly in the case of "Bhopal Gas Tragedy" the supreme court of
India & Government of India are deadlier criminals than
U.C.I.L&U.C.C.
Just consider a case here, Just a few years back an U.S.based M.N.C
ENRON set-up a power project in Maharashtra, India through it's
subsidiary. When Maharashtra state Electricity Board failed to lift
power from Enron& pay them monthly guaranteed revenue, Enron
threatened to invoke, open the "Eschrew Clause" with the Government
of India & to approach international arbiter U.K. Government of India
has stood as conter-guarantee in this case. Finally the Government
paid, of course subsequently the parent ENRON collapsed due to other
reasons. If in this case if Government of India failed to pay-up as a
counter guarantee & refused to comply with the award of International
arbiter, definitely Government of U.S.A. would have stepped into the
scene to protect it's MNC. Hypothetically, In the same vein if Enron
has caused damages to Indians either through negligence of safe
practices or industrial accidents or bank frauds
amounting over and above it's Capital base & insurance cover, then it
would have been the duty of parent Enron & Government of U.S.A. to
step in & pay-up.
In the same way, the U.C.I.L has caused massive damages to Indians &
refusing to pay commensurate to damages. Dow chemicals which took-
over U.C.C. is also refusing to pay. DOW chemicals which is the new
owner of U.C.C. naturally inherits both profits, credits lent &
liabilities to pay of U.C.C. Still it is refusing to pay. Now it is
the turn of Government of U.S.A. to cough-up the sum.
Nowadays, it has become routine for central & State ministers to go-
on foreign jaunts, to globe -trott inviting F.D.I/ M.N.Cs to India.
They do sign numerous agreements, only favouring MNC. When tragedies
occur or when they cheat Indian banks/ investors, it is Indians who
suffer. The ministers & bureaucrats thinks themselves as wizards and
enters into agreements with MNCs, industrialists in a hush-hush
manner, with vast scope for possible corruption. Is it not the duty
of
government to be transparent ?

An appeal to honourable supreme court of USA & HE Honourable
president
of USA Mr.Obama

Your government protects all Americans, all American companies both
inside America & abroad. If an American tourist is murdered in a
third
country , American investigators fly over to that country to conduct
investigation in total disregard to local laws. In the same way , if
the interests of an American company is threatened in a third country
American government goes to it's rescue.

However , when an American company butchers , causes mass man
slaughter in a third country , as an American company did in Bhopal
India , no action by American government. Still the said American
company has not removed , cleared the accident site of poisonous
debris at Bhopal India since decades and still causing mass man
slaughter , no action by American government why ?

Some US based companies are selling soft drinks , food products ,
medicines , drugs in third world countries , which are causing grave
health damages to the public. The quality standards of these products
are fit cases of rejections by US FDA. Some US companies are selling
drugs ( which are banned in the USA ) to third world countries ,
still
us companies are exporting such dangerous medicines , foods to third
countries . no action by US government , why ? is it because you
think
that the lives of non Americans are cheaper than Americans ?

Hereby, I do request your kindself ,

1 . to initiate criminal prosecution against US based key management
personnel responsible for Bhopal gas tragedy .

2 . to make either the respective company management or US government
to pay compensation to victims of Bhopal gas tragedy on par with
American lives , as if the same tragedy happened in the USA itself.

3 . to order the management of the said company to clean up Bhopal
off
poisonous debris , from the accident site at their own expense.

4 . To legally prosecute US exporters & US based companies selling
products ( which violates US FDA regulations or banned in the USA
for
domestic consumption ) to third countries.

WHY MULTINATIONAL COMPANIES ARE INVESTING IN INDIA?

We condemn the brutal massacre by police on farmers – who are going to
loss all their lands , sources.of livelihood for the sake of special
economic zones , industrial parks , etc in various states of India.

In every mega projects undertaken by government , both the state
government & central government have functioned like REAL ESTATE /
COMMISSION AGENTS for the rich & mighty . the government says it is
acquiring lands for development of industries , for public good. In
reality there is only good of rich & mighty.

For forming S.E.Zs , corporates gets speedy single window approvals
from government , lands at concessional rates – lower than market
value , soft loans from Indian banks , tax exemptions for years from
the government , dedicated power supply , etc , from the government .
these corporates are even given free hand to raise share capital in
the Indian market. the government has enacted flexible labour laws
specifically for S.E.Zs , they can hire & fire without bothering to
pay gratuity , etc and they are exempted from providing P.F / E.S.I
coverage to their employees ie they need not worry about the
occupational health hazards of their employees , they can employ them
till they are fit & throw them on streets afterwards. These corporates
take our own money, employ our own people , use our own natural
resources & finally take away the net profits to their home
countries – what they give back ? – environmental pollution , tax
evasions , low paid occupational hazardous jobs to locals , stock
market scams .


During Previous License Regime foreign, investment was not directly
welcome in India. As people at that time perceived it as "Neo
colonisation" & detested it. There were various restrictions on
foreign investments. The local industrialists under monopolistic
environment thrived, who were no way better than day light robberers,
of course with a few exception. Under the political patronage, the
cunning industrialists looted public money, cheated the government of
tax, cheated lending banks & cheated the investors
too. They easily flouted labour laws & made labourers to work in
inhuman conditions.

During 1990's under the international pressure India signed GATT &
slowly started opening it's economy. Now, from 01/01/05 even product
patent has come into force in India. Are MNCs bringing high technology
intensive industries to India? No, not at all. They are actually
denying sophisticated technologies to India. They are only
bringing the FMCG industries - salt, chips, ketch-up, colas, for which
India is a huge home market. They are into services like Hotels,
medical care, marketing. In other cases, they are just marketing the
products manufactured at their bases in U.S.A. or Europe.

They are not bringing in new production technologies in the areas like
space research, nuclear energy, bio-technology, pharmaceuticals or
pollution control, to India. Also, some MNCs are relocating their
highly polluting industries to India, as they are subjected to
stringent environmental protection standards in their own home
countries. Whereas, In India the Government is highly corrupt & can be
bought for a price. The attractive points for foreign direct
investment (FDI) in India are,

1. There is lack of comprehensive environmental norms.

2. The enforcement of environmental norms is lax.

3. The cost of health coverage, social security net to be provided to
the workers exposed to the occupational hazards is less.

4. The cost of compensation to be paid to the persons-who died or
suffered damages due to occupational hazards/environmental pollution
is meager.

5. The enforcement of labour laws are lax.

6. Public money can be easily raised through lending Banks, primary
market within India & the public can be easily cheated.

7. The tax can be evaded through various loopholes like transferring
money to holding companies situated at Mauritius or countries which
have double taxation avoidance agreement with India.

8. The tax can be evaded, company money can be cheated by lending
money to sister / holding concerns at low interest rates or by selling
shares, materials to their private companies at low rates or by buying
shares, materials from their holding/sister concerns at exhorbitant
rates, etc.

9. The corporate governance laws are almost absent in India & it's
enforcement nil.

10. Above all, the time can be bought by very slow Indian legal
system, if any dispute arise.

11. On top of it, well trained, technically qualified people are
available at low rates through contractors.

Just consider the following cases which highlight the apathy,
irresponsibility of government of India and emboldened the cunning,
MNCs:-

1. The India which boasts of so much scientific/technological
advancements, is till date has been unable to provide potable water to
it's people. People of west Bengal , Karnataka , Andrapradesh states
are forced to drink Arsenic, Fluoride poisoned water.

2. The people living near the mines of R.E.M.P. in Kerala are
suffering due to exposure to the radio active materials, Same is the
case with the people of Jadaguda, Jharkhand, living near the U.C.I.L.
plant. Both M/S R.E.M.P & M/s U.C.I.L are department of atomic energy
enterprises.

3. Few years back, In Mysore railway station containers of radio-
active materials were left unattended. The dome of reactor building at
construction stage collapsed in nuclear power plant at Kaiga. A fire
tragedy occurred in Kakrapar nuclear power plant. In the recent
Tsunami waves onslaught, certain important facilities of Koodakulam
atomic plant were damaged near Chennai.

4. In 1984, U.S. based MNC union carbide mass murdered nearly 20,000
people, injured lakhs who are still suffering health problems. The
polluted poisonous accident site i.e. Union carbide plant in Bhopal is
not yet cleared off toxic materials even after 20 years.
This is still further damaging the residents of Bhopal.

5. In the above union carbide disaster, the Government of India didn't
present the case properly before supreme courts of India & U.S.A.. As
a result the MNC just paid a pittance as compensation. As per that the
cost of Indian lives are just a fraction of cost of
American lives. Just imagine if a same disaster occurred in U.S.A. at
the plant of a MNC headquartered in India, what would have been the
consequence?

6. In India, hazardous chemicals laced with food additives are passed
through the drinks, beverages like pepsi, cola, coco cola very easily.

7. The medicines like nimesulide, paracetamol, etc. with hazardous
side effects which are banned in U.S.A.& Europe, are easily marketed
by the same U.S.& Europe based MNCs in India.

8. In India spurious drugs, medicines, food stuffs are easily
marketed.

9. In India, the clinical trials of new medicines under research are
done without proper compensation structure to those being tried upon
ie. Virtual guinea pigs.

10. In India, the genetically engineered BT crops are being introduced
without paying attention to formers, ecology or eco-system.

11. In India, during setting up of large projects, scant attention is
paid to environment, eco-system & the displaced persons.

Most of the times, in government projects itself the displaced persons
are cheated by the government in numerous ways.

12. In India, various Government as well as private hospitals dumps
hospital wastes with deadly viruses in the open, with scant regard to
public health.

13. In India, aged ships belonging to foreign countries are breaked
down to scrap in ship breaking yards of Gujarath , Maharashtra & AP.
Various toxins like the Asbestos, lead, etc & the hazardous, dirty
water, Oil inside the ship are drained into Indian seashore. The
labourers here are forced to work without any safety gears.

14. When specific cases of human rights violations were brought before
the government & Judiciary by us , both of them didn't respond at all.

All the above cases highlight the fact that, government of India &
Indian judiciary treats it's citizens lives as cheap, dispensable at
will. This is the major attracting force for MNCs to India.

BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDY 1984 -Bhopal, India


At the first instance the Government of India failed to ensure that
Union carbide India Limited (U.C.I.L) has installed proper safety
measures and fully implemented it in practice, at it's plant in
Bhopal. The Government of Madhyapradesh through it's labour
department, factory inspectorate & pollution control board failed to
enforce safety practices & environmental protection. In turn, the
U.C.I.L didn't install in full, the safety measures being followed by
it's parent company union carbide corporation (U.C.C) at it's
Various plants in the U.S.A. The U.C.I.L. didn't give community
training to residents of nearby localities, to cope up with
emergencies ie. Industrial accidents. U.C.I.L gave a go - by to safety
practices, as it treated Indian lives as cheap. The government of
Madhya pradesh instead of shifting slum dwellers around U.C.I.L, to
other safe place, gave them legal title deeds just months before the
tragedy in 1984.

Now, refer the following:-

1. After the accident at it's U.C.I.L. plant at Bhopal, India in 1984,
when the U.C.C. Chairman/C.E.O. came over to Bhopal from U.S.A to
visit the accident site, local police arrested him on the charges of
manslaughter. However, the Government of India got him released.

2. In 1985, Government of India enacted "Bhopal claims Act" took- away
the right of appeal of all the Gas tragedy victims & declared itself
as the sole representative of all victims. This said act itself is
violative of victim's fundamental & human rights. The
victims didn't choose Government of India as it's representative under
will, agreement, trust or pleasure.

3. The paradox of this "Bhopal claims Act" is that, Government of
India which is also a party to the crime, tragedy, itself is the
appellant. The appellant (Petitioner),defendant are Government of
India, Prosecution by Government of India & Judged by Government of
India.

4. In 1989, when an appeal about interim compensation to be paid by
the U.C.I.L to all the victims was being heard in the apex court, the
supreme court of India without giving a chance to the victims to make
their point, without consulting them, without making a proper
assessment of damages/losses, gave an arbitrary figure as verdict &
dropped all civil, criminal proceedings against U.C.C.&U.C.I.L

5. In the same year 1989, the Government of India without consulting
the victims of disaster, without making proper assessment of damages/
losses, negotiated a settlement with the U.C.C. and in turn gave full
legal immunity to U.C.C.& U.C.I.L from civil &
Criminal proceedings

6. Even the Government of India didn't present the case of victim's-
gas tragedy victims, properly before the U.S.courts, where the U.C.C
is based. All these premeditated acts only benefited the criminals-
U.C.C&UCIL. Are not the supreme court of India & Government of India,
here to safeguard Indians and to safeguard Justice?

After all these crimes, the Government of India failed to distribute
compensation in time to victims. It has failed even to provide safe
drinking water to the residents near the accident site, It has failed
to provide comprehensive medical care to the victims, till
date . It has even failed to get the accident site cleared off toxic
wastes either by the culprit management or by it self, that too after
20 years. The very presence of these toxic wastes since 20 years is
further contaminating, polluting the environment and taking toll of
more victims.

Particularly in the case of "Bhopal Gas Tragedy" the supreme court of
India & Government of India are deadlier criminals than U.C.I.L&U.C.C.

Just consider a case here, Just a few years back an U.S.based M.N.C
ENRON set-up a power project in Maharashtra, India through it's
subsidiary. When Maharashtra state Electricity Board failed to lift
power from Enron& pay them monthly guaranteed revenue, Enron
threatened to invoke, open the "Eschrew Clause" with the Government
of India & to approach international arbiter U.K. Government of India
has stood as conter-guarantee in this case. Finally the Government
paid, of course subsequently the parent ENRON collapsed due to other
reasons. If in this case if Government of India failed to pay-up as a
counter guarantee & refused to comply with the award of International
arbiter, definitely Government of U.S.A. would have stepped into the
scene to protect it's MNC. Hypothetically, In the same vein if Enron
has caused damages to Indians either through negligence of safe
practices or industrial accidents or bank frauds
amounting over and above it's Capital base & insurance cover, then it
would have been the duty of parent Enron & Government of U.S.A. to
step in & pay-up.


In the same way, the U.C.I.L has caused massive damages to Indians &
refusing to pay commensurate to damages. Dow chemicals which took-
over U.C.C. is also refusing to pay. DOW chemicals which is the new
owner of U.C.C. naturally inherits both profits, credits lent &
liabilities to pay of U.C.C. Still it is refusing to pay. Now it is
the turn of Government of U.S.A. to cough-up the sum.

Nowadays, it has become routine for central & State ministers to go-
on foreign jaunts, to globe -trott inviting F.D.I/ M.N.Cs to India.
They do sign numerous agreements, only favouring MNC. When tragedies
occur or when they cheat Indian banks/ investors, it is Indians who
suffer. The ministers & bureaucrats thinks themselves as wizards and
enters into agreements with MNCs, industrialists in a hush-hush
manner, with vast scope for possible corruption. Is it not the duty of
government to be transparent ?


edited , printed , published & owned by NAGARAJ.M.R. @ : LIG-2 / 761 ,
HUDCO FIRST STAGE , OPP WATER WORKS OFFICE ,
LAKSHMIKANTANAGAR ,HEBBAL , MYSORE -570017 INDIA cell :
09341820313
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