Bhopal: Prime accused of the Bhopal gas tragedy, Warren Anderson, was allowed to walk out of jail at the behest of the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Home Minister Narasimha Rao.
According to a report published in leading Hindi daily, Nai Duniya, this was revealed in a report filed by Justice SL Kochar headed panel.
The panel had on February 24 submitted its report to the Madhya Pradesh Chief Secretary Antony JC Disa.
The panel has given a clean chit to the then Bhopal District Magistrate Moti Singh and Superintendent of Police Swaraj Puri. The two were facing charges of assisting Anderson's departure from Bhopal. The report said that Moti and Swaraj abide by the instructions given to them by their seniors.
It stated that Rajiv and Narasimha had verbally ordered the Cabinet Secretary of the Central government to ensure release of Anderson. He had then asked Madhya Pradesh Secretary Brahma Swaroop for the same.
Following these development, Hanumanganj police station was ordered to allow Anderson to walk free.
The report also claimed that probe by Justice NK Singh Commission in 1985 was ordered to be stopped in between after Centre's intervention. The panel was formed by the state government three days after the incident had taken place.
It has further advocated for formulating a law for compensation.
The tragedy was one of the worst industrial disasters in the world, leaving thousands of people dead and over half a million injured in 1984. Anderson was the chief executive officer of the UCC, owner of Union Carbide India Ltd., which ran the plant from where the deadly methyl isocyanate leaked.
