The organisations of survivors of the Bhopal gas tragedy on Thursday demanded dropping of criminal charges against 200 gas victims, booked by the police under various charges in connection with rioting and violence during a ‘rail roko' agitation on December 3.
Addressing journalists here, the organisations, led by the Bhopal Group for Information and Action, said 14 men had been arrested under false charges of murderous assault and other serious offences “without a shred of evidence.”
“Impartial” investigation
The organisations also condemned Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan for going back on his promise of instituting an “impartial” investigation into the incident.
“We have photographic and video evidence to prove that the violence on the 27th anniversary of the disaster was provoked by an attack on defenceless women survivors by armed policemen under the orders of the Collector,” Rachna Dhingra of the Bhopal Group of Information and Action said.
“By criminally charging gas victims, some older than 80 years and most with health problems, the government is just trying to suppress the survivors' legitimate demand for adequate compensation from Union Carbide and Dow Chemical,” she said.
Mufti Abdul Razzak, the spiritual leader of Muslims in Bhopal, joined the conference and supported the victims' demands, blaming the district administration for the violence.
Issuing notices
The organisations praised the State Human Rights Commission for issuing notices to the district administration and the police.
Another survivor organisation, the Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Udyog Sangathan (BGPMUS), separately submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister and the State Home Minster, expressing disappointment at the arrest of innocent Muslim youths.
“Two youths, Afzal and Naeem, who had nothing to do with the protests, have been arrested and sent to jail. Arrests are regularly going on since the night of December 3,” said Abdul Jabbar, of the BGPMUS.
