THE KARNATAKA HIGH COURT SOUGHT A RESPONSE FROM THE STATE IN A SUICIDE OF A SWEEPER WHO WAS FORCED TO CLEAN THE MANHOLE WITH BARE HANDS WITHOUT SAFETY GEAR

2^nd March 2021

The Karnataka High Court, headed by Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka, directed the State Government to respond to an incident filed by  Advocate Clifton D Rozario in which a sweeper from Karnataka allegedly ended his life on Tuesday after being forced to clean a manhole with bare hands. The deceased, identified as Narayana, left a suicide note behind.

The note left behind by Narayana revealed that he worked with the Maddur town municipality. On 2nd November, the deceased was made to clean a manhole without safety gear, making headlines. An inquiry was also ordered against the officials, Narayana in his note. He alleged that the officials harassed and threatened him to confirm that he entered the manhole without any safety gear of his own will.

The High Court during the hearing mentioned the death of two manual scavengers due to suffocation in a manhole on January 28th.

The Karnataka High Court stated that the matter would be heard on 16 March.

Author: Papiha Ghoshal