Arjun breaks silence, points finger at Rao on Anderson exit

New Delhi, Aug 11 (PTI) Breaking his silence, Arjun
Singh Wednesday appeared to point fingers at the late P V
Narasimha Rao in the exit of former Union Carbide chief Warren
Anderson in the wake of Bhopal gas disaster in 1984, thereby
giving a clean chit to the then Indian Prime Minister Rajiv
Gandhi.
"The Chief Secretary informed me that there have been
persistent calls for granting bail to Mr Anderson from Home
Ministry officials in Delhi," said Singh, who was then the
Madhya Pradesh state Chief Minister, pointing fingers at Rao,
who was then the Indian Home Minister.
Singh, who did not not share a good relationship with
Rao during his days as HRD Minister in Rao's Cabinet at the
Centre later, said he had ordered the arrest of Anderson and
wanted it to be recorded so that he could be produced before
courts when needed.
Participating in a debate on the Bhopal gas tragedy,
the world's worst disaster in December, 1984 that had claimed
more than 15,000 lives, Singh said he had informed Gandhi,
who was in Harsukh town in Madhya Pradesh, immediately after
the arrest of Anderson on December 6, 1984.
"Rajivji did not not utter a single word in the next
two days either in support of Mr Anderson or try to mitigate
his problem. Attaching motive to the then Prime Minister
would be a figment of imagination of persons who can see
nothing constructive of a person of that stature," he said
giving a clean chit to Gandhi.
Ever since a Bhopal court gave a light punishment to
the accused in the gas disaster case, there have been
opposition allegations Gandhi could have a hand in the exit of
Anderson soon after his arrest in the case. PTI AKK
KAB