Karat demands scrapping of Nuclear Liability Bill

CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat today demanded an “independent enquiry” into the Bhopal gas disaster and the scrapping of the Civil Nuclear Liability Bill.

At the sidelines of a convention on Tribal rights, Karat stepped up the offensive against the Congress-led UPA government after reports emerged that the then Congress chief minister of Madhya Pradesh Arjun Singh allegedly helped Warren Anderson (Union Carbide chief) flee the country under pressure from the Central government led by Rajiv Gandhi.

The recent attack on the Congress over the Bhopal disaster also gave an opportunity to the hardliner CPI(M) leader to toughen his position on the Civil Nuclear Liability Bill that seeks to have a limited liability cap for the operator and exemption of equipment suppliers in case of a nuclear disaster. The Bill, which is pending decision with a Parliamentary Standing Committee, is facing opposition from the BJP, the Left and some other parties.

Karat doesn’t see any merit in “a few changes in the bill” as a solution. According to him, the motive of the government is to keep foreign suppliers insulated from compensation. If in the future, foreign companies are allowed to operate in Indian nuclear power plants, they could also get away with limited compensation in case of a nuclear accident.

As this proposed law is tilted heavily in favour of “American companies”, there is no need for such a law, said Karat. “This bill will legalise exemption from all liabilities of foreign suppliers.”

While the Manmohan Singh government has formed a Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Union Home Minister to relook at the compensation issue of the Bhopal victims and legal possibilities, Karat brushed aside the GoM saying, “A comprehensive enquiry is required on how the central and the state governments facilitated Anderson’s exit. This can’t be done by a GoM. We need an independent enquiry into the whole issue of the Bhopal gas disaster.”

When asked to elaborate on what should be the nature of an independent probe, Karat said his party is looking into the issue and will come up with a concrete demand soon.

The CPI(M) had earlier decided to negotiate with the UPA government for major changes in the Civil Nuclear Liability bill. But in the current situation, Karat seems to be taking a hard-line approach against the ruling coalition.

With the BJP too, raising the heat on the Congress, there is a possibility that the two sides may again find a common issue to attack the government at the centre.