Migration Jurisprudence from the South › India
People’s Union for Democratic Rights v. Union of India (Asiad workers)
Supreme Court of India · India · 1982-09-18 · National court
Citation: (1982) 3 SCC 235
Type of case: Constitutional and human rights
Outcome: Decided for the migrant side
Question
Were migrant construction workers building the 1982 Asian Games venues entitled to the minimum wage and other labour protections?
What the court decided
Yes. Paying less than the minimum wage is forced labour under Article 23; the State must enforce labour laws against contractors.
In plain language
Workers from other states built stadiums in Delhi for the Asian Games and were paid less than the legal minimum. The Supreme Court said paying below the minimum wage is a form of forced labour.
Dalam bahasa sederhana
Pekerja dari negara bagian lain membangun stadion di Delhi untuk Asian Games dan dibayar di bawah upah minimum. MA menyatakan membayar di bawah upah minimum adalah bentuk kerja paksa.
Pertanyaan: Apakah pekerja bangunan migran yang membangun arena Asian Games 1982 berhak atas upah minimum dan perlindungan lain?
What happened afterwards
- 1982-09-18: Judgment.
Sources
Open this decision in the interactive collection (compare, filter, Indonesian view, downloads).
Cite as: Institute for Migrant Rights (2026), Migration Jurisprudence from the South, version 0.1, https://theimr.org/court-decisions/d/in-asiad-1982/. This page summarizes a court decision for research and advocacy; it is not legal advice.