The Invisible Shackles: Addressing Compulsory Labour Through Constitutional Mandate
- IJLLR Journal
- Jun 12
- 2 min read
Shivika Goyal, Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law
Introduction:
The concept of bonded labour in India is not novel; rather, it is modern day form of slavery which is an amalgamation of inhumane exploitation and discrimination. The most significant feature of a bonded labourer is his complete erosion of bargaining power i.e. lack of ability to raise a voice against the creditor who subjects him to inhumane and unequal treatment. When the labourer fails to to reimburse the debt to the creditor in a similar form, then he renders services on conditions which are not only brutal but also inhuman and discriminatory. The entire system is a representation of unequal exchange which not only represents severe violations of human rights but is also a disgrace to the labour's dignity.
This exploitative system is rooted in the socio-economic structures which can be mainly characterised as the "caste system" wherein the majority of bonded labours belong to the Dalit or indigenous class of people including Dalits and Adivasis. In the ancient Indian era, there was linkage between the occupational status and the caste of an individual, the same system that continues to entrap generational cycles of forced labour, despite constitutional guarantees of equality. The entire mechanism of bonded labour was much more prevalent in the pre- independence period, following which Article 23 of Indian constitution was drafted which prohibited the practice of any form of forced labour and made all such practices punishable. Even though there was a constitutional provision which prohibited any form of forced labour, the parliament failed to enact a law which explicitly abolished the practice of bonded labour. The bonded labour system is an outcome of a debt-bondage system under which the debtor agrees along with the creditor that he would render services either himself or through his family members for a time period without any form wages.
