India orders arrest of American in Bhopal gas leak

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.khaleejtimes.ae/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/international/2009/August/international_August33.xml§ion=international&col=

1 August 2009

NEW DELHI — An Indian court has issued a warrant for the arrest of the former head of the American chemical company responsible for a gas leak that killed at least 10,000 people in Bhopal 25 years ago.

Warren Anderson was the head of Union Carbide Corp. when its factory in the central Indian city leaked 40 tons of poisonous gas on Dec. 3, 1984 — the world’s worst industrial disaster.

More than 555,000 people who survived the initial disaster are thought to have suffered aftereffects, though the exact number of victims has never been determined. Many have died over the years from gas-related illnesses, like lung cancer, kidney failure and liver disease.

On Friday, in response to a recent appeal by a victims’ group, Prakash Mohan Tiwari ordered the arrest of Anderson, who is reportedly living in the U.S. Tiwari, who is the chief judicial magistrate of Bhopal, also ordered the federal government to press Washington for the American’s extradition.

[dipsydoodle]

1. About time too.

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