Congress wants GoM to reopen Bhopal gas case

Under both public and political pressure to take corrective action on the 26-year-old Bhopal gas tragedy case, the Congress Core Committee (CCC) on Friday decided that the Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Union Home Minister P.Chidambaram will explore legal possibilities of reopening the case.

The core committee met at the Prime Minister’s residence to evaluate the fallout of the verdict. “The government is moving on the issue, the GoM will look to the legal issues to see whether the case can be re-opened,” said sources. The Government was under pressure to press for 91-year-old Anderson’s extradition from the US.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Union ministers Pranab Mukherjee, A K Antony, Chidambaram, Veerappa Moily and the party chief’s political secretary Ahmed Patel attended the CCC meeting.

The party’s top leadership also took a dim view of Digvijay Singh’s comment indicating the then Central government’s involvement in Anderson’s escape.
With then Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Arjun Singh refusing to break his silence on the conspiracy that led to Anderson’s virtual acquittal, a desperate Congress said that the party too would like to know the truth on which only Singh can shed light.
In other words, it would like the former CM to take the blame for Anderson escaping the trail.
As the present BJP-led Madhya Pradesh government threatened to steal the thunder by appointing a committee to look into the Anderson-escapade episode, it was time for the Congress to take a call on the political damage. “I categorically deny involvement of the Central government—(headed by Rajiv Gandhi),” Congress spokesperson Jayanti Natarajan said.

She raised doubts on PC Alexander’s (principal secretary to Rajiv Gandhi) remark that “the CM and the PM being in touch is nothing unusual”, and downplayed Digvijay Singh’s comment that possible US pressure could have been reason to let Anderson escape.

Source:- http://expressbuzz.com/nation/congress-wants-gom-to-reopen-bhopal-gas-case/180982.html