The Central Information Commission (CIC) has told the ministry of external affairs (MEA) to provide information on the alleged safe passage promised to Warren Anderson, the American national accused in the Bhopal gas tragedy case. The CIC was acting on a complaint filed against the ministry in which the applicant had sought to know from the ministry if it promised any safe passage to Anderson during his visit to India, three days after the tragedy which killed over 15,000 people.
The CIC has given the ministry time till November 30 to comply with its directive.
Anderson had reached Bhopal from the US nearly three days after the gas tragedy struck the city on the intervening night of December 2-3, 1984. Upon his arrival, he was arrested by the police but he was later granted bail by a local court. However, Anderson managed to leave the country on December 7 and he has remained evasive since then. He was allegedly allowed to use an aircraft of Madhya Pradesh government to travel from Bhopal to Delhi. The Central Bureau Of Investigation (CBI) has been pursuing the matter of extradition of Anderson since 1993. However, the US Department of State did not agree for extradition of Anderson in the Bhopal Gas Leak case stating that the request of the Indian Government did not meet the requirements of dual criminality under Article 2(1) and 9(3) of the extradition treaty.