Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela emphasized the urgency of the issue and instructed the Delhi government counsel to submit a status report on the steps taken.
NEW DELHI: Today (18th July): The AAP Government assured the Delhi High Court that they will take action to rescue minors trafficked from across the country and forced into bonded labour in Delhi upon receiving actionable information.
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Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela emphasized the urgency of the issue and instructed the Delhi government counsel to submit a status report on the steps taken.
This follows a PIL requesting authorities to conduct raids and rescue more than 1,000 trafficked minors.
The petitioner, Rohtas, who claims to support the NGO ‘Sahyog Care For You,’ filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL). In the PIL, Rohtas asserts that he has sent 18 complaints to authorities, urging them to raid various properties in Delhi and rescue 245 children and 772 adolescents working as bonded laborers. These minors reportedly forced to work in extremely unsafe and unhygienic conditions for 12-13 hours daily.
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According to the plea, most of these children have been trafficked, live with their employers, and subjected to hazardous working conditions that severely impact their health and physical development.
During the hearing, Delhi government’s standing counsel (Civil) Santosh Kumar Tripathi argued that the petitioner had not provided specific addresses of the properties where the child laborers are allegedly working, making it difficult for authorities to take action.
In response to the petitioner’s counsel, who mentioned only receiving communication for a meeting from three Sub Divisional Magistrates (SDMs), Tripathi assured that he would arrange a meeting with the SDM (headquarters) on the same day.
The PIL highlights that over two months have passed since the initial complaints sent to the concerned authorities.
Despite multiple reminders to eight district magistrates and 16 SDMs in Delhi, no action has been taken by the administration. The law mandates that rescues in such cases should be conducted within 24 to 48 hours.
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The petitioner seeks a court directive to ensure that all complaints regarding child labour, bonded labour, or trafficking are investigated within 24 to 48 hours of receipt.
