Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday (June 24, 2026) reacted sharply over the alleged incident of forced bonded labour in Muzaffarnagar describing the incident as an assault on human dignity adding as jobs disappear due to the collapsed economy most vulnerable sections are falling prey to such exploitation. 

“The case of bonded labour of workers in Muzaffarnagar is very shocking. In addition to being forced to work without pay, workers were bitten by dogs, speared, whipped, and fed cattle feed. This is an assault on human dignity – the victims deserve justice and rehabilitation, and the perpetrators deserve the harshest punishment,” wrote Mr. Gandhi, on X. 

He added, “It is also important for us to ask what compulsions force workers into such dangerous situations. As jobs disappear, incomes stagnate, and protections for the most vulnerable, such as MGNREGA and labor laws, are weakened, desperation grows. Those with no other options or protections become easy prey for such exploitation. This isn’t a typical criminal incident - it’s the debris of a collapsed economy”. 

For over a year, 13 laborers worked at a factory in the Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh, lured by the promise of employment, fair wages, and an improved quality of life. However, the workers claimed they were confined within the factory’s walls, had their mobile phones and identification documents confiscated, were denied food, subjected to severe physical abuse, and monitored continuously by two pitbull dogs kept on the premises to deter any attempts at escape. A raid conducted on June 22 by joint teams from the Labour Department, police, and local administration revealed what officials characterised as a case of bonded labour at the tote-making factory. The workers are from U.P., West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand. 

Uttar Pradesh Congress leader Ajay Kumar Lallu said the failed economic policies of the BJP government were responsible for such oppression of the ordinary poor people. “These workers joined the factory for livelihood, but the gradual collapse of the Indian economy along with weak labour laws, government’s favorable policies towards factory owners and lack of regulatory oversight leads to such oppression. Uttar Pradesh government talks big about investment from big industries and global capital, but no investment is coming, it’s structural failure of the BJP government,” said Mr. Lallu, a former State Congress president.