Dow plea nixed, gas tragedy probe stays with Bhopal court

BHOPAL: A Bhopal court will continue to hear the criminal case linked to the 1984 Bhopal gas disaster , rejecting Dow Chemical's plea to shift proceedings to a CBI court in Indore. Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) Hemlata Ahirwar ruled Wednesday that her court holds jurisdiction, fixing the next hearing for Aug 23.

Dow Chemical, which took over Union Carbide Corporation in 2000, had earlier been declared a proclaimed offender after failing to respond to six court summonses. It responded only after seventh notice was served to its US headquarters. Dow's counsel - senior advocates Siddartha Luthra and Ravindra Shrivastava - said Indian courts, including JMFC Bhopal, lack jurisdiction over a US-based company and only CBI court in Indore is competent to hear the case. The argument marked a shift in Dow's earlier stand that no Indian court could conduct proceedings against it.

CBI's counsel Manphool Vishnoi and lawyers for NGO Bhopal Group for Information & Action (BGIA) - Avi Singh and Prasanna B - opposed the jurisdictional challenge. They said the disaster happened in Bhopal and the case falls squarely within its courts' authority, regardless of CBI's role as prosecuting agency.

The court will now examine three key issues: Dow Chemical's claim that no legal action can be initiated against it in India; the company's accountability for the Bhopal disaster after its acquisition of UCC; and BGIA's 2024 application seeking Dow's business integration plan during the UCC takeover. BGIA had earlier urged the CJM court to formally make Dow a party in the case.