Arjun Singh's welfare trust received “donation” from Union Carbide

by Mahim Pratap Singh

A financial statement, signed by Arjun Singh’s son Ajay Singh, shows that the trust received Rs.1,50,000 from Union Carbide for the construction of a building.

Even as senior Congress leaders mount pressure on Arjun Singh to “speak up”, a document doing the rounds in political and journalistic circles of Bhopal suggests that Mr. Singh might have received financial favours from Union Carbide.

The document is the annual financial statement prepared by the Chartered Accountant of the Churhat Children’s Welfare Society (Rewa), which was managed and run by Mr. Singh's family.

The statement, signed by Arjun Singh’s son Ajay Singh, shows that the society received Rs.1,50,000 from Union Carbide for the construction of a building.

Ajay Singh was at that time the secretary of the society.

It needs to be taken into consideration that this transfer of money took place in 1982-83, before the disaster struck. Before the night of December 2, Carbide was a high profile corporate entity in the state and it was considered an honour to be associated with it.

The company routinely used to sponsor local events and its Shyamla Hills Guest House was a favourite among political leaders from all hues of the spectrum, who used to enjoy its plush hospitality during their visits to the state capital. Some sources also claim that the celebrated late Congress leader Madhav Rao Scindia was also a shareholder of the company.

In such a scenario, Arjun Singh’s accepting a “donation” from Union Carbide might not have been significant, but as a direct beneficiary of the company’s finances, doubts have been raised that he might have subsequently acted in a manner which could have helped Carbide’s top employee Warren Anderson when needed it.

Local Congress party workers however reject the theory that the decision was made following a call from Delhi.

“If he got a call from Rajiv Gandhi to let Anderson go, did he also receive instructions from Rajiv to accept favours like foreign visits and donations from Union Carbide?” asks a party insider on the condition of anonymity.

source; the hindu