48 migrant labourers rescued from Karnataka

Dharmagarh: Following prompt intervention of Kalahandi district administration and senior Congress leader Bhakta Charan Das, 48 migrant labourers of Dharamgarh area in the district managed to return to their native place from Karnataka on Tuesday.

Talking to media persons after arriving at Dharmagarh, the migrant labourers of Sekhapada area of Junagarh said they were lured by Dhabale Majhi, a broker, who assured them of jobs in Karnataka.

They said while working in a brick kiln in Karnataka, they were physically tortured by their owner who did not offer them proper food and their due wages. They also alleged that Arjun Kapata, one of the migrants who went with them, was beaten to death by the brick kiln owner and his men while the broker Dhabale Majhi took away his wife Yashoda and her nephew to an unknown destination.

They further alleged that two women labourers were sexually tortured by the broker.

“Following the incident, we managed to contact the district administration while our family members took up the matter with senior Congress leader Bhakta Das, who acted promptly and rescued us from captivity with the help of the local administration and the police,” they said.

Meanwhile, the family members of Arjun have lodged a complaint with the Junagarh police about the missing Yashoda and her nephew.