Court backs CBI plea for Anderson's extradition in Bhopal case

New Delhi, Mar 23 (PTI) An Indian court wednesday
allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), India's
premier investigation agency's plea for extradition of former
Union Carbide Corporation chairman Warren M Anderson, an
accused in the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy case, from the United
States, saying that "sentiments of the disaster-hit people" is
linked to it.
"Considering the entire gamut of facts in its holistic
perspective and the sentiments of disaster-hit people, I deem
it expedient and in the interest of justice that there is no
bar in law in seeking extradition of Warren Anderson from the
corresponding US authorities," Chief Metropolitan Magistrate
(CMM) Vinod Yadav said.
The court also said that there is no reason that the
US authorities will not heed to the extradition plea.
"I see no ground or reason that why the US authorities
would not cooperate with the CBI in extraditing Anderson. The
request of the CBI for extradition of Anderson stands
allowed," the CMM said.
"Let extradition request to the corresponding US
authorities be sent through appropriate ministry for
compliance," the court said.
The court's order came on a CBI plea seeking
permission to get 90-year-old Anderson extradited to stand
trial in a Bhopal court on charges of culpable homicide not
amounting to murder in connection with the world's worst
industrial disaster that left over 15,000 people dead and
maimed over five lakh besides killing thousands of animals.
The CBI argued before the court about the seriousness
in getting Anderson extradited which it had been trying since
1987 when the charge sheet was filed in the case in the court
of Chief Judicial Magistrate in Bhopal, the capital city of
the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh .
"A chronology of steps taken by the CBI, right from
1992 till July 2010 in the case would reveal that the CBI was
not sleeping over the matter and was conscious about its
duties to bring Warren Anderson to book," the judge noted.

Noting that between 1987 and 1999, "there was no
extradition treaty between India and the USA," the court
observed, "The CBI continued its efforts for securing his
presence."
The court said the CBI had filed a charge sheet
against Anderson way back in 1987 as a "primary accused" in
the case and its plea for his extradition had the legal
backing of the extradition treaty between India and the US,
which was inked on September 14, 1999.
The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate took into
consideration the CBI's contention that its earlier attempts
to get Anderson extradited from the US had "failed on account
of communication of US Department of State to (Indian)
Ministry of External Affairs" in July 2004 due to what the
Americans claimed was "insufficient material."
It agreed with the CBI that its bid to get Anderson's
presence is not aimed at his "political persecution".
"The CBI has referred to Article 2 and 4 of the
(Indo-US) Extradition Treaty which deals with extraditable
offences and political offences to emphasise the point that
the offences for which Anderson was chargesheeted
categorically fall in the category of extraditable offences
and not in the category of political offences," the CMM said.
"And so there is no political persecution of
Anderson," the court said, adding that the offences for which
a charge sheet was filed against the then UCC Chairman were
also offences under the US law and so he also attracts the
principle of "dual criminality" in the matter.
The court concurred with the CBI argument that the US
authorities had rejected the agency's earlier plea to get
Anderson extradited "on account of sending of insufficient
material for the purpose."
It also conceded the CBI plea that the June 7, 2010
verdict of Bhopal Chief Judicial Magistrate, convicting Union
Carbide India Limited chief Keshub Mahindra and six others
employees "is conclusive material implicating Anderson
in the matter through the depositions of various witnesses."
The court observed that S Varadarajan Committee,
constituted to probe structural defects of the Bhopal plant,
had concluded that "there was defect in the design of the
plant."
Anderson had never faced trial in connection with the
disaster over 26 years ago and was declared a proclaimed
offender by the court of Bhopal Chief Judicial Magistrate in
1992 after he jumped bail, which he had secured on December 7,
1984 following his arrest.
The CBI had on Tuesday moved the court for extradition
of Anderson, saying that it would be a travesty of justice if
he is not put to trial for his alleged role in the 1984
tragedy.