A curative petition filed by former Prime Minster of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh-led government in 2010, for increased compensation of Rs.7,844 crore to the victims of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy was dismissed by the Supreme Court of India on March 14.
A constitution bench of the Supreme Court led by Justice S.K. Kaul dismissed the petition citing, “We are unsatisfied with the Union of India for not furnishing any rationale for raking up this issue after two decades.”
“Settlement can be set aside only on the ground of fraud. No ground of fraud has been pleaded by the Union of India.”
“The center itself stated earlier that the amount paid by Union Carbide Corporation was sufficient to settle all the claims of victims. The court also directed that a sum of ₹ 50 crores lying with the Reserve Bank of India be used to clear the pending compensation claims.”
The Bhopal disaster or Bhopal gas tragedy was a chemical accident on the night of 2–3 December 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. Considered the world’s worst industrial disaster, over 500,000 people in the small towns around the plant were exposed to the highly toxic gas methyl isocyanate (MIC). Over 3,000 people were killed and more than a lakh was affected.