New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday said the constitutional prohibition against bonded labour and the statutory measures enacted to enforce it cannot remain mere assurances on paper.
The apex court directed the Union government to implement within six months its Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the implementation of the law and the applicable rehabilitation scheme.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Aparesh Kumar Singh highlighted that the prohibition of bonded labour is among the most fundamental assurances of human dignity embodied in the Constitution and the obligation of the State extends beyond securing their physical liberty to ensuring that such liberty is meaningful, enduring and accompanied by the means to lead a life of dignity.
It said unless such freedom is accompanied by timely financial assistance and meaningful rehabilitation, those released from exploitation may find themselves compelled by economic necessity to return to the very conditions from which the law sought to protect them.
"The constitutional prohibition against bonded labour and the statutory measures enacted to enforce it cannot remain mere assurances on paper. The release of a bonded labourer cannot be treated as the completion of the State's obligation when the conditions necessary for a life of dignity remain unfulfilled," it flagged.
The bench said identification, release and rehabilitation must therefore be understood as interconnected stages of a continuing constitutional responsibility.
The top court, which issued a slew of directions for implementation of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 and the applicable rehabilitation scheme, was hearing two pleas seeking enforcement of the constitutional obligations of the concerned authorities.
The pleas highlighted the delays in providing immediate financial assistance to rescued bonded labourers and the deficiencies in the institutional mechanisms responsible for their identification and rehabilitation.
The bench directed that immediate financial assistance admissible under the rehabilitation scheme shall ordinarily be disbursed within seven days of issuance of the release certificate, subject to necessary verification.
It said immediate assistance shall not be withheld merely because investigation or criminal proceedings remain pending, where the requirements of the applicable scheme are otherwise satisfied.
Highlighting that the importance of timely rehabilitation cannot be overstated, the bench said a person released from bonded labour is often left without an independent source of livelihood and remains vulnerable to further exploitation.
"Financial assistance intended to address immediate needs loses much of its purpose when its disbursement is delayed for months or years," it said.
The bench highlighted the case of petitioner Surendra Manjhi, who was rescued in 2019 but received immediate financial assistance only in 2022, while 17 other labourers who were rescued along with Manjhi had still not received their financial assistance.
The top court directed the Union government to take an appropriate decision within three months on the proposed revisions to the rehabilitation scheme, including enhancement of immediate financial assistance, simplification of rehabilitation procedures, clarification of responsibilities in inter-State cases and the proposal for interim subsistence assistance where rehabilitation benefits are delayed.
Until such revisions are brought into effect, disbursement shall continue to be governed by the applicable scheme, it said.
"Mere liberation from bondage, without adequate arrangements for rehabilitation, would fail to secure the constitutional guarantees under Articles 21 and 23 of the Constitution," it said.
It added that the duty to eradicate bonded labour must be understood as a continuing obligation and the effectiveness of the statutory protections depends not merely upon their existence but upon their implementation in a manner that secures timely relief, meaningful rehabilitation and protection against a return to conditions of exploitation.
The top court directed the Union government for uniform implementation of the SOP in the country within six months and asked all states and Union Territories (UTs) to take necessary steps to implement the SOP and comply with the directions issued hereunder within six months from the date of the order.
It asked the Union government to issue necessary supplementary guidelines, in consultation with the NHRC, within three months.
The top court, which posted the matter for hearing after seven months for ensuring compliance of the directions, said an uniform procedure must be there to provide for prompt verification of complaints concerning bonded labour, ordinarily within 24 hours, followed by expeditious rescue wherever warranted.
"The Union of India shall also prescribe a uniform format for release certificates, which shall be recognised by all States and Union Territories, so that differences in administrative requirements do not obstruct the rehabilitation of rescued labourers," it said, while emphasising the importance of inter-state coordination on the issue of rescue and repatriation of bonded labourers.