Dow counsel challenges holding gas case hearing at Bhopal court

Time of India

16-05-2025

Bhopal: Senior Counsel for Dow Chemical, appearing for the US chemical giant in a city court, contended that since the prosecution agency in the gas disaster criminal case is the CBI, the hearing should be held at the CBI magistrate's court in Indore and not the
JMFC court
in city.
He appeared during arguments on an application challenging the jurisdiction of a Bhopal court or any court in India to hold a trial on a US-based company. The case is being heard in the court of JMFC (Judicial Magistrate of First Class) Hemlata Ahirwar in Bhopal.
The CBI counsel, Manful Bishnoi, however, argued that the JMFC court in Bhopal has complete jurisdiction to hear the case, and it's the court in Bhopal that has been hearing the
Bhopal gas disaster
criminal case since 1992.
He further stated that a competent court at the place where the crime took place always has the jurisdiction to hear the case, even if the CBI investigates the case and files the charge sheet.
During the hearing of the Bhopal gas disaster criminal case in the court of the chief judicial magistrate (CJM), the Bhopal Group for Information & Action (BGIA) moved an application seeking to make Dow Chemical a party in the case, as it bought over
Union Carbide Corporation
(UCC) in 2000, which was a proclaimed offender in the gas disaster criminal case.
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The court of CJM and later JMFC courts issued notices to Dow Chemical to appear in court, but it was only after seven summonses were issued to the company, the last of which was served on the company's headquarters in the US, that advocates representing the company appeared in court.
They clarified that the company doesn't find a court in Bhopal or anywhere else in India to hold a trial or any legal proceeding against the US-based company.
In Oct 2023, advocates for Dow Chemical appeared in the court at Bhopal and raised the issue of jurisdiction.
Since then, the point of contention was if the court in Bhopal has jurisdiction. But on Tuesday, lawyers representing Dow changed tack and argued that the JMFC court in Bhopal doesn't have the jurisdiction to hear the case where the CBI is the prosecution agency.
The JMFC court, after hearing arguments from all sides, deferred the hearing.
BGIA co-convener Rachna Dhingra, after the hearing, said that advocates for Dow Chemical have deliberately raised the issue of transferring the case to the CBI court in Indore as a tactic to buy time, as the court in the previous hearing asked them to present the 'integration plan' of Union Carbide with Dow Chemical. "The case was transferred to the JMFC court by the CJM, Bhopal, and the CBI counsel says that the case could very well be heard here, but advocates for Dow Chemical are trying to delay proceedings in the court, and we are sure the judge understands it," Dhingra said.