BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) A letter addressed to this Court complaining about prevalence of bonded labour system in Cutton, Anagpur and Lakkaarpur areas of Faridabad District.in Haryana State wherein the stone quarries workers are living in most inhuman conditions, was treated as a writ petition under Art. 32 of the Constitution. This Court appointed two Advocates as Commissioners to inquire into the working conditions of the stone quarry workers with particular reference to the cases mentioned in the writ petition. This Court finding the necessity of an in-depth investigation into social and legal aspects of the problem also appointed Dr. S. B. Patwardhan and Mr. Krishan Mahajan to study the working conditions prevailing in the various quarries within the Faridabad district with particular reference to violation. of provisions of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act of 1976 and Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment Conditions of Service) Act. The Commissioner furnished- their report to the Court on 28th of June, 1982.

(2.) Several questions were raised before the Court apart from merit of the dispute; the important ones being (i) whether an application under Art. 32 of the Constitution as maintainable, particularly when no allegation of infringement of petitioner's fundamental right was made; (ii) whether a letter addressed to the Court could be treated as a writ petition and be proceeded with in the absence of support by affidavit of verification; and (iii) whether the Court had power to appoint Commissioners or an investigative body to inquire into allegations made in the petition and by affidavits and require reports to be made to the Court for facilitating exercise of its jurisdiction under Art. 302 of the Constitution.

(3.) The concept of public interest litigation had not then adequately developed and its concours sufficiently delineated; the practice of accepting letters as a foundation for a writ petition had not also been clearly established; in writ petitions the practice of appointing Commissioners of investigating agencies had not been precedented; the traditional concept of defence of locus standi had not been wiped away notwithstanding the decision in S. P. Gupta v. Union of India, (1982) 2 SCR 365: (AIR 1982 SC 149).