Dalit boy narrates bonded worker's tale of woe in Madras High Court

MADURAI: “We had to work from 5 am till midnight, preparing sweets in a closed room. At times, the work extended to the next day. No break is allowed even to visit the washroom,” said a 16-year-old Dalit boy and a victim of child trafficking in his statement before the High court's division bench here comprising M M Sundresh and Sathish Kumar. 

A middleman Kasi Mayan from Usilampatti, had trafficked the boy when he was 11-years-old to work in a sweetmeat unit owned by one Ramar of Nathuka village in Nasik in Maharashtra in 2013. He had paid Rs 1,000 as advance to the boy's father M Arumugam from Kullalakundu village in Dindigul district and promised a monthly salary of Rs 5,000, eight-hour work, food and accommodation and periodical leave for his son.  

However, Ramar forced the boy into bonded labour for more than four years without proper food and accommodation, no salary and also refused to allow him to visit his house even during festivals. When he prevented the boy from speaking to his parents over phone, Arumugam filed a habeas corpus petition in the court, seeking to direct the authorities to produce his son, either dead or alive. Based on the court direction, a CBCID team rescued the boy from a field in Nathuka village in Nasik and produced him before the judges here today.

Unable to withstand the torture by Ramar, the boy had escaped from the firm six months ago and worked in a farm for food. When the petitioner’s counsel David Subder Singh insisted that the boy should be provided rehabilitation following the rules of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition Act), 1976, the judges directed police to produce him before the revenue divisional officer to take steps for his rehabilitation.

Earlier when the court expressed serious concern over lacuna in the government machinery to prevent child and human trafficking in the state, additional advocate general Pugalenthi said that human trafficking of this nature was more often reported only in Usilampatti taluk in Madurai and Dindigul district. He also promised to submit a comprehensive report about the situation in the jurisdictional districts.

The petitioner's counsel requested the court to issue a direction to the authorities to conduct a survey and prepare a list of workers who have migrated from Tamil Nadu to other states and vice versa and create a legally enforceable procedures to coordinate the Labour department with other government agencies to combat labour trafficking. After recording the recommendations, the court posted the next hearing of the case to August 3.