Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi recently reacted to Muzaffarnagar bonded labour incident. He sought justice and strict action against the perpetrators who exploited and brutally abused helpless workers.
Taking to X, he noted the horrific treatment given workers, “The case of bonded labor among workers in Muzaffarnagar is utterly shocking. In addition to forcing them to work without wages, the workers were bitten by dogs, stabbed with spears, whipped, and fed animal fodder.”
Calling it an assault on human dignity, he demanded “justice along with rehabilitation, and the perpetrators the harshest possible punishment.” The case relates to twelve bonded labourers, including minors, who were rescued from a paper plate manufacturing factory in Muzaffarnagar district. When authorities conducted a raid in the factory located in in Mandi village, they found workers with visible torture marks and injuries on their bodies, PTI reported.
Terming this incident a result of economic failures and inadequate worker protections, he added, “When jobs dry up, incomes stall, and safeguards like MGNREGA and labor laws meant for the most vulnerable sections are weakened, desperation only mounts. Those with no other options or protections become easy prey to such exploitation. This is no ordinary criminal incident—it is the rubble of a crumbling economy.”
This incident came to light when one of the bonder labourers identified as Vikram, from Rajasthan’s Jodhpur district, managed to flee by scaling the boundary wall on 22 June. He alerted officials at Titawi police station about the abuse and trapped workers who were ultimately rescued. These workers hailed from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Nepal.
The workers were allegedly kept in inhuman conditions, beaten, assaulted and were not paid the promised ₹12,000 monthly wages. According to HT report, these workers were trapped for over 18 months and suffered bruises, cuts, fractures and prolonged physical abuse over this period as the accused assaulted them with iron rods, sticks and fan belts.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra reacts to Muzaffarnagar bonded labour incident
Hours after Rahul Gandhi's social media post, Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also reacted and criticised the incident. Condemning the assault, she said it “cannot be tolerated in any civilized society.”
In a post on X, she wrote, “According to reports, the laborers were held captive. Instead of being paid wages, they were subjected to horrific torture. They were fed dry rotis and animal fodder. They were beaten with sharp weapons and whips. They were made to be bitten by dogs.”
The post added, “This is not merely cruelty against a few individuals, but an assault on human dignity and on our Constitution. Strict action must be taken in the matter, and the guilty must be given such punishment that it sets a precedent.”
Factory owner Ankit Balyan's father Pradeep Balyan and factory supervisor Shiva Tyagi have been arrested while Ankit Balyan is on the run. The police booked all the three under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
