"It’s outrageous that we will soon mark the 20th Anniversary of this tragic event and Dow Chemical has still not stepped forward to take full responsibility for the actions of Union Carbide," Pallone said. "I want the people of Bhopal to know they have the strong support of me and more than a dozen of my colleagues in the U.S. Congress. It is unacceptable to allow an American company not only the opportunity to exploit international borders and legal jurisdictions but also the ability to evade civil and criminal liability for environmental pollution and abuses committed overseas."

"The ‘polluter pays’ principle has been affirmed by both international law and American common law and the appropriate means for addressing pollution or environmental harm regardless of where it occurs," the members write in the brief. "That principle cannot be ignored simply because the polluter has abandoned its facility, sold its shares in a subsidy or otherwise effected change of ownership.

"Union Carbide cannot express shock and dismay at being criminally charged for its alleged role in a tragedy that killed thousands and injured hundreds of thousands," the members continue in their brief. "To deny equitable relief on these grounds would, in itself, be inequitable."

Last July, Pallone and 17 of his colleagues wrote a letter to Dow Chemical requesting that Dow take responsibility for the accident and immediately take steps toward reparations for the victims. Pallone and his colleagues specifically requested the company’s Chairman and CEO William Stavropoulos take the following action: 1) ensure the appearance of a Union Carbide representative at the ongoing criminal case in Bhopal; 2) meet the demands of survivors for medical and economic rehabilitation; 3) clean up the contamination in and around the factory site and the poisoned groundwater, and provide alternative supplies of freshwater to the affected communities in the interim.

In a response to the U.S. lawmakers’ letter, Stavropoulos wrote in August that Union Carbide resolved the issue over a decade ago and that Dow "inherited no responsibility." Stavropoulos vowed to protect the interests of the company’s shareholders, employees and retirees against such actions.

Pallone, a Democratic Congressman from New Jersey, co-founded the U.S. House of Representatives’ Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans in 1993 and served as the co-chair from 1993-1998. With well over 100 members, the Caucus seeks to identify issues of concern to the growing U.S./India relationship, to advocate policies to strengthen that relationship and to serve as an informational resource for Members of Congress and their staffs about a wide range of diplomatic, security and economic issues.