By Pervez Bari,
New Delhi, 13 Nov 2014: Energized with yesterday’s visit of eminent personalities like Justice Rajindar Sachar, D. Raja and Kuldip Nayyar, a group of women survivors of the Bhopal gas tragedy observing indefinite waterless fast near Parliament House here for one week are now looking towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take up their issue for justice.
Twenty eminent personalities of Delhi on Wednesday visited five women survivors of the Union Carbide gas disaster and their supporter who are on the second day of their water-less fast and spoke in support of their protest here at Jantar Mantar. They also called upon the Prime Minister of India and the Union Minister of Chemicals to resolve the issues related to additional compensation immediately.
The five organizations that are leading the “dharna” (sit-in) and waterless fast said they had not received any communication from the government so far. The organizations said that in the last four years, they have written 15 letters to the Central government including four to the current regime and none of them have been answered. They have asked to correct the errors of the previous government on the issue of compensation for the gas disaster.
Justice (Retd.) Rajindar Sachar, D. Raja, General Secretary, Communist Party of India, veteran journalist Kuldip Nayyar, renowned photographer Raghu Rai, legal scholar Usha Ramanathan, columnist Praful Bidwai, Kavita Krishnan, Secretary, All India Progressive Women’s Association, human rights activist Gautam Navlakha and representatives of Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union and Jamia Teachers Solidarity Association who visited the protest site also signed an open letter to the Prime Minister calling for immediate resolution of the issues raised by the survivors’ organizations.
Leaders of the survivors’ organizations also called upon the Prime Minister to ensure that American Dow Chemical Company does not get away with its disrespect for Indian courts. Dow Chemical did not appear before the Bhopal District court to which it was summoned today.
The Bhopal gas survivors and victims are on a waterless fast demanding equal distribution of ex-gratia payment of Rs.100,000 among all affected people, the correction of the compensation being demanded by Government of India from Union Carbide in its curative petition in the Supreme Court of India. The Government is demanding just $1.2 billion while scientific estimates peg the additional compensation required at $8.1 billion.
Justice (Retd.) Rajendra Sachar sitting with the agitating Bhopal gas tragedy survivors and victims in Delhi on 12 Nov 2014.
“This September our Prime Minister extended the American corporations the warmest welcome to India they have ever had. And now the number one American corporation Dow Chemical has just today defied the summons of the Bhopal District Court. This is an issue of national significance that the Prime Minister must address himself as he is in charge of the prosecution CBI, (Central Bureau of Investigation), India’s premier investigating agency”, the five organizations said in a joint statement.
Bhopal Group for Information & Action, one of the five organizations protesting at Jantar Mantar, has filed an application today for publication of proclamation against Dow Chemical or ex-parte proceeding against the offending corporation. The organizations said that the Government must immediately announce that it will not allow Dow Chemical to make any investment in India till it obeys the summons of the Indian courts. It must also prepare to move against Dow Chemical’s Indian subsidiaries to enforce criminal jurisdiction.
Five Bhopal-based organizations, working for the welfare of survivors and victims of the tragedy, that are jointly leading the protest are Bhopal Group of Information and Action, (BGIA), Bhopal Gas Peedit Nirashrit Pensionbhogi Sangharsh Morcha, Children Against Dow Carbide, Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachari Sangh and the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha, (BGPMPSM).
It may be recalled here that in Bhopal, the capital of central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, on the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984 the Union Carbide pesticide manufacturing factory had spewed 40 metric tonnes of poisonous Methyl Iso-cyanate gas whereby 3000 people had perished virtually instantly and over the years more than 25000 have kissed death and the sad saga is still continuing uninterruptedly. Over half a million are still suffering from the side effects of the poisonous gas and several thousands of people have been maimed for life. ([email protected])
