Outrage in India over Bhopal gas leak verdict

Indian politicians, campaigners and newspapers vented outrage yesterday at two-year prison terms handed to those found guilty over the 1984 Bhopal gas leak disaster that left thousands dead.

Anger focused on the 25-year delay in the convictions, the perceived leniency of the sentences and the feeling that the "big fish" – the chief executive of the US parent group Union Carbide – had got away.

One survivor, Champa Devi Shukla, said she "felt like an idiot holding a placard outside the court while the accused left in big cars". "Shame On India" headlined the Mail Today, while the front page of The Times of India read: "Justice Delayed, Denied."