New Delhi: A PIL has been filed in the Supreme Court which seeks directions to the government to allow the return of migrant workers to their home towns after being tested for COVID-19 and to arrange their safe travel by providing necessary transportation facilities.
The PIL has been jointly filed by Jagdeep S Chhokar and Advocate Gaurav Jain. Chhokar is a former professor, dean and Director in charge of Indian Institute of Management, Ahemdabad (IIM-A) and is also one of the founders of 'Association for Democratic Reforms'.
The petitioners, citing various media reports, argue that even when the government has issued advisories to ensure payment of wages, not sacking them from their job and rented accommodations, all of it has happened and the workers are desperate to go back to their homes now.
Chhokar and Jain say that it is completely unreasonable to stop the workers from going back given further lockdown.
Further, the petitioners contended that there are about 4 crore to 12 crore migrants workers in India and according to the centre's status report, only about 15 lakh workers are being given shelter and food by the employers where they are working, and there are around 10 lakh people who are living in the shelters, bringing the total figure to 25 lakhs which is far less than the 4 crores and is just 6% of the migrants.
The PIL says that the fundamental rights of these workers, right to move freely throughout the country and to settle in any part of the country, can not be suspended indefinitely.
"Because Article 21 of the constitution of India also envisages the right to live with dignity and the same is being denied to these migrant workers who have been stranded in cities away from their native villages and hometowns, given the indefinite national lockdown," read the PIL.
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