The Bhopal High Court has pulled up the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for "lack of seriousness" in handling criminal proceedings against Union Carbide Corporation (UCC), whose negligence caused the Bhopal gas leak in 1984. In a three-and-a-half page order given on September 27, chief judicial magistrate Anil Kumar Chaturvedi said that despite repeated assurances, the CBI has failed to inform the court -- for more than one year -- about the progress of extradition proceedings against former UCC chief Warren Anderson.
CBI had sought Anderson's extradition in connection with the criminal suit filed in December 1, 1987, after he failed to appear even once before the court. On September 27, CBI counsel Chandra Kant Sahai was to appraise the court of the steps taken for Anderson's extradition, but he failed to present himself in court. The court ruled that his absence was an indication of the "recalcitrance of the government".
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