Supreme Court on Friday Issued Notice to Centre on a suo motu case registered on a letter received by MP Mahua Moitra regarding the condition of Migrant Workers amid the Complete lockdown Nationwide due to Coronavirus COVID-19 Pandemic.
A division Bench comprising of Justice Nageswara Rao and Justice Deepak Gupta issued notice to Centre seeking their reply and also directed a copy of the letter petition to be sent to Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.
Mahua Moitra, Member of Parliament from Krishnanagar, West Bengal had written to the Chief Justice of India, and other Supreme Court Judges, regarding the migrant workers and their condition in wake of the 21-day Nationwide lockdown that has been imposed.
For the first time in India’s history, a 21-day total lockdown has been imposed to fight the deadly Covid-19 pandemic. On March 24, Prime Minister announced measures to curb the spread of this virus, imposing a 21day lockdown in the Country. India, post the lockdown has seen what maybe called one of the biggest migrations in the history of this Country. The lockdown resulting in shutting down of businesses and almost all operations, a large number of migrant workers have been left without jobs and food or shelter. Due to this, a large number of workers tried to return to their homes.
Mahua Moitra, addressing this issue has stated in her letter petition that the extreme circumstances being faced by the migrant workers need to be addressed by the Supreme Court urgently.
“My lords, these workers are the poorest of the poor and they subsist on daily wages. Unless a serious and immediate intervention is made by the executive agencies, thousands will perish from starvation and lakhs will be put to the risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19 virus”
She has also informed the Court about the numerous messages that she has received from migrant workers from West Bengal who are now stranded in different cities. Acknowledging the need of the lockdown in controlling the spread of COVID -19 in the Country, she has also pointed out that it has led to a humanitarian crisis and thousands of workers had to walk back home and were not even paid wages by their employers.
“While no public spirited citizen disagrees with the intent and rationale behind the lockdown and the ensuing quarantine to contain the pandemic, however the manner of its execution has put in jeopardy the lives of thousands of helpless migrant workers and their families across India.”
Moitra has prayed for the Court to take cognizance of the issue, stating that these workers live in extreme poverty and if no action is taken, there will be deaths due to starvation during the lockdown, and has also requested the Court to issue directions to the executive agencies to make arrangements for the such workers, and ask the employers to provide due wages , food and shelter to these workers, during this crisis.
The Supreme Court while addressing the issue of these migrant workers in another petition had previously had directed the authorities to ensure availability of food, drinking water, and medicines to the migrant workers housed in shelters. The Centre, however had submitted that as the morning of March, 31 , there were no migrant workers stranded on the roads, and they were being sent to the shelter homes that are available.
The Court will now hear the matter on Tuesday, April 7