The Hassan police have rescued 19 people, who were allegedly kept in a shed with no proper facilities and forced to work without wages for several months, at Annenahalli in Arsikere taluk. The police conducted the raid on the shed, acting on information they received on May 16.
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Hassan SP Hariram Shankar, in a press conference in Hassan on Wednesday, said Munesh, 44, and his assistant Anil, engaged people from distant places to work in ginger fields. They were taken to different fields during the day. They were provided shelter at Annenahalli and never allowed to go out. The accused provided the workers with food and liquor but no salary.
The Banavara police rescued the workers and registered the case against the accused as per the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, besides the relevant sections of the IPC. They also seized a vehicle from the accused.
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The accused targeted gullible people at Arsikere Railway Station and forced them to work with no wages. “Many of the workers are from distant places with hardly any source of income. They were not allowed to use their phones,” he said.
The SP said that the accused had faced similar charges in the past. “This is the fourth time they are accused of engaging workers without salaries. We will definitely take strict measures to ensure they do not indulge in such activities in the future,” the officer said.
Ramesh Shetty, a worker from Mangaluru, said that he was not allowed to talk to his parents for the last two months. He had come to Arsikere to attend a festival, and there he came into contact with Anil, one of the accused. Similarly, other workers said that they were not allowed to take rest even when they fell sick. Their repeated appeals for salary were ignored, they said.