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60-year-old kept as bonded labour, toes and fingers cut upon him asking for wage

He was promised a job and money but he was instead made to work as bonded labour

They brought him to another state with promises of a job and money, but instead, they made him work as bonded labour for months before chopping off his fingers and toes off.

Chamru Paharia who belongs to Nuapada district in the Indian state of Odisha, was brought to Nagpur city to work at a construction site by two middlemen in July this year, reported CNN-News18, an Indian English-language news television channel.

Paharia decided to ask for his wages but that was not received well by the perpetrators. The two middle-men thrashed him, and chopped off three fingers from his right hand and all five toes from his right leg with a sharp weapon.

The men were identified as Dolal Satnami and Bidesi Sunami.

After the attack, the accused left the 60-year-old at the Nagpur Railway station where Railway Protection Force found him and admitted him to a local hospital. He underwent treatment for three months.

Paharia’s relatives brought him back to his village in September. However, he was too scared to speak against the perpetrators since they belong to the same village, News18 reported.

“They have left him disabled for his entire life. He is not able to walk, cannot hold anything. They ruined my family’s life,” said Tularam, Paharia’s son.

Meanwhile, the middle-men have been absconding.

Activist Dilip Kumar Das filed a petition with the National Human Rights Commission on Sunday, seeking justice for Paharia. “Chamru accused the duo of duping him. In a heated argument, the duo chopped his right fingers and toes and dumped an unconscious Chamru near the Nagpur Railway Station,” Das was quoted as saying, according to the news report.

Dilip Das has sought a directive from the authorities for ensuring rehabilitation for the daily-wage labourer as per the Bonded Labour Rehabilitation Act.