Bhopal gas tragedy: Group of ministers discusses legal options

The possibility of government approaching the Supreme Court with a curative petition against the dilution of charges in the Bhopal gas leak case is understood to have found wide support in the Group of Ministers (GoM) which met here for the second day today.

The GoM, which is expected to finalise its report for the prime minister on Monday, discussed all the pending legal issues and options before it.
    
The curative petition issue is said to be high on the priority list of the GoM in the light of country-wide outrage that was witnessed after the June 7 judgement of the Bhopal trial court which gave two years imprisonment to all the accused, sources said.

Experts said that the Bhopal court had no option but to give the light sentence after the Supreme Court had diluted the charges against the accused from culpable homicide not amounting to murder to negligence under the IPC.

Another legal issue that came up but a decision is yet to be taken relates to the demand for seeking extradition of former Union Carbide chief Warren Anderson to face trial here in the case of Bhopal gas leak disaster in which over 15,000 lives were lost in December 1984. 

Anderson's exit from India on December 7 in the aftermath of the disaster has also triggered another major controversy over who was responsible for the "safe passage".

Home minister P Chidambaram, who heads to the reconstituted GoM, said after today's meeting "We discussed all pending legal issues and legal options available to the government after the judgement of trial court".

The GoM heard all concerned and reached some "tentative
conclusions", he said adding "these conclusions" will be
firmed up in the report to be submitted to Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh on Monday.

The nine-member GoM was reconstituted on June 7 amid
raging controversy over the quantum of punishment given to
those accused in the case, with the political class in unison terming it as "too little, too late". It began its meetings yesterday.

Among various issues, the GoM is considering increase in
compensation for those affected by the 1984 disaster.

The Planning Commission has already approved a package
of Rs 982 crore for the gas disaster victims.

Chidambaram said the GoM, at the next meeting this evening, will discuss issues relating to health and how to bring healthcare to people who have suffered and "perhaps continue to suffer".

Issues related to drinking water will also be discussed. 

The prime minister has directed the GoM to expedite its
work and asked it on June 14 to submit report within 10 days.