Pune: In a shocking case of forced labor, a group of 41 individuals, including 22 laborers and 19 children, were rescued from captivity at a work site in Reda, Indapur taluka. The rescue was carried out following a complaint by their relatives to the District Collector of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
According to officials, the workers had been held for six months without receiving any wages and were also denied proper food and basic necessities. The accused tractor owners allegedly demanded ₹8 lakh from the workers and issued death threats when they could not pay.
How the Laborers Were Trapped
A formal complaint was filed by Sandeep Tarachand Thakre and others on March 25, 2025, stating that their family members had traveled to Indapur for sugarcane cutting work on October 16, 2024 under a contract with Raghunath Dhanaji Sonawane and local tractor owners.
The workers were given an advance payment of ₹12 lakh for their labor, in exchange for 11 sickles. However, after six months of work, they had not received any wages. They were denied food, and their livestock was left unfed, leading to the death of a cow. The employers demanded ₹8 lakh from the workers and allegedly threatened to kill them if they failed to pay.
Police Rescue Operation
After the complaint reached higher authorities, the Pune District Collector and the Deputy Commissioner of Labor Welfare were asked to intervene. Under the supervision of Baramati’s Sub-Divisional Officer Vaibhav Nawadkar and Sub-Divisional Police Officer Dr. Sudarshan Rathod, Tehsildar Jeevan Bansode and Police Inspector Suryakant Kokane led a rescue operation in Reda, successfully freeing the trapped workers and bringing them to Indapur Police Station.
Case Registered Against Contractor and Employers
Following the rescue, Vishnu Narayan Gaikwad (31, laborer from Nevpur, Kannad) lodged an official police complaint. He stated that:
Contractor Raghunath Dhanaji Sonawane had taken money from farmer Sanjay Pandurang Devkar for sugarcane cutting work and told the workers to stay put until he returned – but he never came back.
Farmers Sanjay Pandurang Devkar and Vikas Sanjay Devkar allegedly kept the workers under constant watch and physically assaulted them.
They were hit with sticks on their legs and backs whenever they attempted to move freely.
A criminal case has been registered against Raghunath Dhanaji Sonawane, Sanjay Pandurang Devkar, and Vikas Sanjay Devkar under charges of illegal confinement and assault.
Advocate Veersen Kajale, a legal advisor for a Mumbai-based social organization, has demanded stronger legal action, stating that:
The victims belong to the Bhil tribal community
Two of the women are pregnant
Two women have infants aged 3 to 4 months
Child labor laws and tribal protection laws should be applied
