Former Chief Minister and Congress candidate from Amritsar Capt Amarinder Singh today asked the BJP candidate Arun Jaitely to come clean on the issue of defending the multinational company, Dow Jones against the Bhopal Gas Tragedy victims who were being denied compensation.In a statement issued here today, Capt Amarinder asked Jaitely whether it was not a fact that he (Arun Jaitley) gave a legal opinion to the company in December 2006. The Dow Jones company had acquired the infamous Union Carbide company which was responsible for the world’s worst industrial disaster known as Bhopal Gas Tragedy in which thousands of people lost their lives while thousands others were rendered incapacitated.
The Congress leader said, after acquiring Union Carbide, the Dow Jones refused to pay any compensation to the victims saying it did not inherit any liability. He said, it was shocking that Arun Jaitely who was a senior BJP leader instead of using his legal expertise and influence in support of the victims of the tragedy took the side of the company and opposed them. “Don’t you think that besides being a lawyer you also owed a moral responsibility towards the victims?” he asked Jaitely, adding, “if you could not support them, at least you should not have opposed them”.The former Chief Minister asked Jaitley whether his conscience pricks him for taking up a case against the people everyone in India feels sympathetic for. “At least don’t you own an apology to the Bhopal Gas Tragedy victims?” he asked Jaitley while adding, “or you will simply hide behind your characteristic denial mode”.