Bhopal, June 14: The alleged donation of Rs one lakh received by the ruling BJP government in Madhya Pradesh from Dow Chemicals has put the BJP in the state in dock, ahead of the assembly elections scheduled in October this year. For a party which always espoused the slogan of `swadeshi', the issue of donation that too from a multi-national company, has not only eroded its image but also exposed the double-standard of the party and the party mandarins are finding it difficult to give an explanation on the issue.

On Saturday, three leading Bhopal Gas Peedit (sufferers) organisations assailed the ruling BJP party for accepting Rs one lakh donation from Dow Chemicals. They said this showed the state government's "aggressive efforts" to protect the American Multinational from its environmental responsibilities".

"BBC's report about Dow Chemical's Rs one lakh donation to BJP explains the Madhya Pradesh government's aggressive efforts to protect the American Multinational from its environmental responsibilities in Bhopal", Syed M Irfan, President of Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila, Purush Sabgharsh Morcha said in the capital.

Presenting Right to Information documents to the Press, he said Rs one lakh donation to BJP is merely the tip of the iceberg as the "favours extended by state government by way of pushing for burning of Union Carbide's toxic wastes, despite the recommendations of experts, is clearly worth a lot more to Dow".

Accusing the BJP government in the state for leading the efforts in the High Court to burn 340 tonnes of Carbides toxic wastes in an incinerator in Anbkleshwar, Gujarat, despite opposition from the Gujarat government and against the opinion of the Expert Committee constituted by the High Court, he said a massive fire-damaged large portion of the Ankleshwar facility on April 3, confirmed the nores of caution in this regard.

Alleging the state government for pushing Dow's agenda of creating a memorial over the lands where more than 10,000 tonnes of toxic wastes lie burried, Irfan said indeed it was the buried waste, rather than the 340 tonnes waste that the government was desperate to burn.