A racket running on the pretext of bonded labour: SC

New Delhi: There is no bonded labour in the country, but a racket is running on the pretext of bonded labour, the Supreme Court said on Wednesday. The court was hearing a petition filed by late social activist Swami Agnivesh on behalf of a woman worker who was allegedly raped by an associate of a brick kiln contractor in the RS Pura sub-division of the Jammu region, PTI reported.

A bench of Justice Hemant Gupta and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia observed, "Do you know who are bonded labourers? They are not bonded. They take the money and come there and are engaged by brick kilns. They come from backward areas. They take the money and eat the money and then resign. This is a racket in the country. These labourers only take advantage of this bonded labourer thing."

The lawyer appearing for Jammu and Kashmir told the bench that a first information report was filed in the case, and an investigation started. But the survivor went untraceable, leading to the closure of the case in 2018.

The Supreme Court said a detailed response had been filed citing several aspects, and the Jammu and Kashmir government will take remedial steps if any are required under the law.

According to the petition filed in 2012, after the woman and her husband expressed their wish to return to their village in June, the contractor refused to relieve them unless they paid him ₹ 3 lakh.

Though the husband managed to escape from the camp, his wife and child were kept under illegal confinement. During the illegal confinement, she was raped by the contractor and others, it was alleged.

The survivor and her son had subsequently shifted to a rehabilitation home at the intervention of an NGO and the police, it was claimed.