LANDMARK CASE
Bandhua Mukti Morcha v. Union of India
(1984) 3 SCC 161 · Supreme Court of India · Labour law
At a glance
- Citation: (1984) 3 SCC 161
- Court: Supreme Court of India
- Area of law: Labour law
- In one line: The Court treated the letter as a petition and held that bonded labourers must be identified, released and rehabilitated.
1 Facts
An NGO wrote to the Court about bonded labourers working in stone quarries near Delhi.
2 Issue
Can the Court act on a letter, and what does Article 21 require for bonded labourers?
3 What the court decided
The Court treated the letter as a petition and held that bonded labourers must be identified, released and rehabilitated.
4 Why it matters
A key PIL case expanding access to justice for the poor.
5 Think about it
Why did the Court relax the rule that only an affected person can sue?
6 Analyse it yourself
Read the full judgment from an official source or a law database, then brief it in seven steps: facts, issues, arguments, decision, ratio, obiter and significance. Always check the citation before you rely on it.
7 More cases on Labour law
- Apparel Export Promotion Council v. A.K. Chopra (1999) 1 SCC 759
- Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board v. A. Rajappa (1978) 2 SCC 213
- Consumer Education and Research Centre v. Union of India (1995) 3 SCC 42
- Delhi Transport Corporation v. D.T.C. Mazdoor Congress 1991 Supp (1) SCC 600
- Medha Kotwal Lele v. Union of India (2013) 1 SCC 297
- People's Union for Democratic Rights v. Union of India (Asiad Workers) (1982) 3 SCC 235
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A short teaching summary for students. Educational content only, not legal advice.