BJP holds protest over Bhopal gas tragedy

Bhopal, June 18 (ANI): The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) organised a rally here on Friday that sought justice for victims of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy.

BJP activists, holding black flags, staged a sit-in protest to press for their demands.

BJP leader Sushma Swaraj said the BJP would launch big rallies and rake up the issue in parliament during the upcoming monsoon session.

"Behind the Bhopal gas judgment, there was indifference and nexus of the Congress party. BJP has decided to expose it. The sit-in protest is the initial one and we will organise a big rally. When the parliament session begins in July, we will bring up this issue vociferously in both the lower and upper houses," Swaraj said.

She demanded a fresh probe into all aspects of the case, including Anderson's exit from the country.

She also accused the then Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Arjun Singh of complicity in the escape of Anderson.

"Arjun Singh is a culprit in this case. But the whole cabinet including then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi is involved in it," she said.

A District Magistrate's court in Bhopal had on June 7 convicted all eight accused on grounds of negligence under Section 304 (a) for the tragedy.

The court also granted bail to seven of the eight accused and released them on submission of a bond and a surety of Rs 25,000 each. (ANI)