Save Migrant Labourer Basumati Suna and Her Kid From Captivity

Even after 11 days of pleading Ashok Muna is still clueless about the fate of his wife and kid who have been held hostage by a brick kiln owner in far away Bangalore.

This is an update on Basumati Muna and her kid’s illegal confinement by a brick kiln owner near Bangalur. Please find the details of Ashok Muna’s - Basumati’s husband – escape and illegal confinement and mistreatment Basumati and her child in a detailed sequence.

The case:

1.        Ashok Muna, aged about 25 years (of village Ghagra in Luhasingha Gram Panchayat of Patnagarh Block in Balangir district in the state of Orissa) had migrated to Bangaluru (Bangalore) along with his wife Basumati, aged about 21 years, to work as a labourer in a brick kiln.

2.        The family had earlier migrated to Bangaluru in 2008 also.

3.       A girl was born to them in the year 2008, while they were there in the Bangaluru the brick kiln. But due to lack of treatment at work place  the infant died there and the family came back to their native village to complete the ritual.

4.       Ashok Muna’s family is very poor and belongs to Dalit community. Ashok was debt burdened. And he was again lured by brick kiln owner  S. K. Rajasekhar (Phone no.: 09141609517) to rejoin as a labourer in the Bangaluru brick kiln.

5.      - Ashok was reluctant but succumbed to the lure of the brick kiln owner as he had no other way.

6.       The brick kiln owner sent Rs 20,000 as advance to Ashok in August 2009.

7.       Ashok, along with his then pregnant wife Basumati, left their village in early September, 2009.

8.       They worked in the brick kiln from September 2009 to July 2010 (11 months). In the meanwhile, a son was born to them there.

9.     They were living in inhuman condition at the brick kiln site. The owner and supervisor were constantly rebuking and beating them.

10.   When Basumati was in the advanced stage of pregnancy and later delivered her child she could not work.  

11.   As his wife could not work  Ashok was asked to do other very hard labour requiring chores throughout the day and night and was paid only 100 rupees per day as wage (note: Normally a whole family works as one unit for brick production. As Basumati could not work, Ashok too could not produce brick alone).

12.   Along with Ashok some other families from his area had also gone there to work in the brick kiln.

13.   As the brick kiln owner’s torture became unbearable some of those family members escaped from that kiln.

14.   After that, the brick kiln owner started torturing Ashok more and was forcing him to get those escaped families back. Ashok neither had any role in taking them (the escaped families) to the brick kiln nor had any role in their escape. Hence, Ashok was in no position to either ascertain their whereabouts or get them back again.  But the, brick kiln owner was not listening to anything and was consistently reprimanding Ashok to’ get them back or face consequences’.

15.   In July, 2010 Ashok asked for a leave to his house as both Basumati and their kid were not keeping well.  But the brick kiln owner not only refused that request but he also threatened Ashok to get the escaped labourers back to work soon. Alternatively, he asked Ashok to pay Rs 50,000 (fifty thousand rupees).  The brick kiln owner was claiming that the escaped labourers own him Rs 50,000.

16.   Ashok and his family’s every move were regulated by the owner. As pressures from the owner became unbearable a desperate Ashok tried hard to find out the whereabouts of the escaped laborers.

17.   He learnt that some of them are working at a brick kiln near Hyderabad.

18.   In mid July, Ashok escaped from the kiln to Hyderabad to persuade the escaped labourers (as he and his family were held hostage by the brick kiln owner because of them).

19.   He stayed for close to a month at the Hyderabad kiln just to persuade them. But the escaped labourers bluntly refused to return their citing gross ill-treatment at the Bangaluru kiln.

20.   Ashok was dumb struck at this. As he found no other way, he requested S.P. Manjunath Gounda – the Superviser of Bangaluru kiln – to come over to Hyderabad and talk to the labourers directly.

21.   The Superviser came to Bangaluru and talked to the escaped labourers directly. But as the labourers still refused, Manjunath threatened Ashok that his wife will be kept hostage as long as he fails to get the labourers back.

22.   Ashok consulted his family members and fellow villagers. They advised him to come back to the village and take help of the district administration.  

23.   Ashok was was at sea. He was unsure and undecided. On one hand his wife and small kid have been held hostage by a hostile kiln owner and on the other hand he had no other way to persuade the kiln owner.

24.   Seeing no other option, Ashok came back to village - directly from Hyderabad. He reached his village on August 19.

25.   On August 21, he came to Balangir (about 70 kilometers from his village) and petitioned the District Collector about his plight.

26.   The District Collector asked him to go to the ‘Labour office’ and lodge his complaint there.

27.   The district labour office asked him to give details in writing. Since, Ashok was illiterate he could not write the details and came back to his village.

28.   Later, with others help he has sent the details through post to the district labour office.

Present status:

1.       Ashok’s wife Basumati and their kid are still held hostage by the brick kiln owner near Bangaluru.

2.       Both Basumati and the kid are unwell and the kiln owner is not providing any treatment to them. A tumor is developing in Basumati’s nose. The kid has fever and is malnourished.

3.       The district administration has not yet established any contact with their counterparts.

The brick kiln where Basumati is held as hostage

-          The brick kiln is located at a distance of about two kilometers from Arghagate bus stop to Sabenhalli road.

-          Arghagate can be reached by bus number 285 (which plies between Yelehenka and Rajenkhunta)

-          There are many brick kilns along Arghagate – Sabenhalli road. This particular brick kiln can be identified by SLN (and LNB) brand or by the name of the owner (S. K. Rajasekhar).

-           It falls under Rajenkhunta police station. The brick kiln is at a distance of about three kilometers from the Rajenkhunta police station.

Possible contacts:

-          The owner of the brick kiln S.K. Rajasekhar’s phone number is +91-9141609517.

-          The brick kiln superviser S.P. Manjunath’s number is +91-9845755518

-          Another worker’s (Ashok could not name him) phone number is +91-9535394601 (He works in the same brick kiln but Ashok was telling that he is a stoop of the owner and hence to be dealt with carefully)

-          Now Ashok Muna too has a phone number. He can be contacted at +91-9668074591.

More threats:

-          Ashok’s father in law and their family work in another brick kiln owned by the same owner. And they also have been held hostage.

-          That kiln (brand name LNB) is situated on Yelehnka to Jankur to Samkeli Road. The kiln is near a stream (Near Jakar Lebed)

This morning when I talked to Ashok he was sobbing endlessly. Please help in getting Basumati and her kid back.