₹450 wage per month form of forced labour: HC

PRAYAGRAJ : Holding payment of ₹450 per month to an employee as wages a form of forced labour, the Allahabad High Court has ordered the Director, Regional Institute of Ophthalmology, MD Eye Hospital, Prayagraj, to pay the minimum wages as prescribed in the state from the date of the initial appointment of the petitioner i.e. June 15, 2001, within four months. The court said that non-payment of minimum wages was violative of Article 23 of the Constitution, which provides the right against exploitation and also the prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour.

Allowing a writ petition filed by one Tufail Ahmad Ansari, Justice Pankaj Bhatia further directed the Director, Regional Institute of Ophthalmology, to pass the order in respect of the regularisation of the petitioner within four months, as he had been working prior to December 31, 2001, and as per 2016 rule of the state government, he is entitled to regularisation.

The present writ petition was filed stating that the petitioner has been working in the said hospital since June 15, 2001, on a class-IV post and is being paid wages at the rate of ₹450 per month since his initial engagement. The court on payment of meagre wages observed “This court is unable to fathom how a state can continue the exploitation of class-IV post employees for about 20 years on the strength of government order (GO), which has been relied upon by the UP government counsel in support of his contention. If the stand of the state counsel is accepted, this court would also be guilty of ignoring the plight of class-IV persons who are being exploited by the state for so long”. The court delivered this judgment on Oct 4.