BHOPAL
The Supreme Court on Wednesday questioned the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for approaching it 16 years after it had diluted in September 1996 the charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder against the accused in the
A five-judge special bench headed by Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia raised the question on delay and asked the CBI as to why it had not filed the review petition during all these years.
Attorney General G.E. Vahanvati, appearing for the CBI said, “I don’t know why it was not filed by the CBI but a review petition was filed in the case by someone else and it was dismissed.”
He said there was a series of illegal omissions on the part of the accused from 1982 onward which led to that disaster.
“I can show series of illegal omissions from 1982 on wards that gives an impression that the disaster was bound to happen,” he said.
He further said there was serious security default besides a default in the design in the plant which led to the disaster.
The bench was hearing a petition filed by the CBI seeking to recall the apex court’s 14-year-old judgement that had diluted the charges against the accused who were prosecuted just for the offence of being negligent.
