BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh HC has issued a strongly-worded chargesheet against former state chief secretary Iqbal Singh Bains, two secretaries of the Union government and three other senior officials in a contempt case over non-compliance of court orders for medical care of
Bhopal gas tragedy
victims, saying that their conduct shows "insensitivity towards gas victims", reports Ashutosh Shukla.
Apart from Bains, those issued a chargesheet include Union health secretary Rajesh Bhushan, Union chemical & fertilisers secretary Arti Ahuja, Indian Council for Medical Research's senior deputy director R
Rama Krishnan
, former director of Bhopal Memorial Hospital & Research Centre (BMHRC) Prabha Desikan and director of National Institute for Research on Environmental Health (NIREH) Dr
Rajnarayan Tiwari
.
The court has already convicted MP additional chief secretary, health & gas relief, Mohd Suleman, and two officials of National Informatics Centre (NIC) in the contempt petition filed by NGOs working among gas victims.
A division bench of Justice
Sheel Nagu
and Justice D N Mishra said, "It is obvious that despite the lapse of more than 10 years, you respondents have demonstrated no urgency or sincerity in complying with directions of Supreme Court as well as of this court, thereby leaving gas victims in the lurch. You have tried your best to render the concept of PIL nugatory by dragging your feet on compliance. This court does not see any good reason behind this laxity by you, except for insensitivity towards gas victims."
The court further observed that the respondents have "willfully shown disobedience" to SC and HC directions.
In 2012, on a PIL filed by
Bhopal Gas
Peedit Mahila Udyog
Sangathan
and other NGOs, SC had set up a monitoring committee to keep a watch on the medical care being provided to gas victims at hospitals designated for them. Later, BMHRC was brought under its jurisdiction.
SC issued 20 directives to deal with shortage of doctors in gas relief hospitals and BMHRC, digitisation of medical records of gas victims, and shortage of medicines and equipment in gas relief hospitals.
Subsequently, SC transferred the case to MP HC.
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