Human Trafficking and Labour Exploitation of Dalits in the USA

The Dalit Solidarity Forum, Ambedkar King Study Circle (AKSC), Hindus for Human Rights (HfHR), Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF), Sikh Coalition, Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC), and India Civil Watch International (ICWI) together express deep concern over reports that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has closed its criminal investigation into the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan (BAPS) organization. This investigation involves the human trafficking and severe labor exploitation of approximately 200 workers, most of whom are Dalits, tribals, and other marginalized communities from India, and many of whom have tragically lost their lives. We demand full accountability and justice for these workers and their families.

In May 2021, following reports of widespread abuse and a worker’s death, the FBI raided the Robbinsville temple. Workers told DSF that their colleague Mohanlal had died in October 2020 on the premises due to BAPS’ negligence. BAPS’ attempts to downplay this incident fueled worker unrest, ultimately leading to the raid that rescued over 100 workers. Soon after, a federal class-action lawsuit was filed, alleging violations of U.S. labor laws, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), alongside a parallel criminal investigation. It is this criminal investigation that BAPS and its allies are now playing to close without any confirmation from the DOJ. The civil wage theft case, however, remains fully intact and is actively moving forward.

Behind the temple’s elaborate stonework lies a hidden history of caste-based exploitation. Dalit and Adivasi stoneworkers, including masons, cutters, and fabricators, have been treated as tools for profit, rendered invisible to devotees, and subjected to systemic segregation. Worker testimonies are well-documented, but DSF is compelled to reiterate them in light of an ongoing disinformation campaign being spread by BAPS and its allies. They have issued statements that instead seek to claim that it was the temple itself that was somehow victimized.

Workers’ Testimonies

• Misleading promises: Over 200 workers from marginalized communities were recruited to work on the Robbinsville temple with false promises of fair pay, healthcare, standard hours and dignity.
• Immigration fraud: Workers were misrepresented as ‘religious volunteers’ at the U.S. consulate in India and made to sign fraudulent forms.
• Confiscation of passports and control: Workers’ passports were taken upon arrival and withheld throughout their stay at the temple. Workers were made to live in hidden trailers, forbidden to speak to visitors or devotees, with penalties for violations like pay cuts, dismissal, or sent back to India.
• Forced confinement: Workers were locked in the temple premises, monitored constantly, with limited outdoor access.
• Grueling labor: Workers performed 13-hour daily shifts, totaling up to 87 hours per week, doing skilled masonry under hazardous conditions.
• Extremely low wages: Workers were paid $1.20 per hour, over ten times less than New Jersey’s minimum wage, with most of their wages deposited in India, trapping them financially.
• Abuse and discrimination: Workers faced verbal abuse, casteist slurs, discriminatory food practices, leftover food with no choice and expired or unprescribed medicines.
• Forced Labor in Hazardous Conditions and Workers Deaths: Exposure to hazardous materials such as silica and other serious health risks has caused the deaths of several rescued workers, including Bhagwandas Chamar, Devi Lal, Ramesh Chandra Meena, Ghanshyam Singh, and Pankaj Khant since their rescue in 2021. The broader impact of respiratory illnesses likely extends well beyond these fatalities, but has not been comprehensively documented.
• Ongoing suffering: Survivors continue to suffer from life-threatening health issues, severe psychological stress, and prolonged separation from their families, including one worker (Gajendar Kumar) who tragically died by suicide in India after struggling with addiction and mental instability.

As of today, the DOJ has not issued any public communication indicating either the conclusion of the investigation or the closure of the trafficking case. Workers representatives have sought clarity from the DOJ but have not received any confirmation. Despite repeated efforts to obtain clarity from the DOJ, no public statement or conclusion has been issued. In this context, we demand that BAPS and its affiliates refrain from issuing further public statements on the matter until the DOJ provides an official update. Continued misinformation is not only reckless, it endangers the lives and safety of workers and their families across the U.S. and India. Such deliberate misinformation may also interfere with the ongoing legal process and affect workers’ access to justice.

We Demand

1. The DOJ immediately direct BAPS and its allies organizations to stop spreading false or misleading claims and suspend all public statements until the department issues an official update on the case, as continued misinformation endangers workers and their families in both the U.S. and India.
2. The DOJ should release a detailed report clarifying the current status of the investigation, with a clear statement on whether the criminal trafficking case is open, closed, or requires further action.
3. A full investigation of BAPS exploitative recruitment and contracting practices, both prior to 2021 and ongoing, to ensure accountability for these preventable tragedies.
4. Members of Congress and political leaders, especially those who have introduced resolutions for BAPS, publicly call upon BAPS to take accountability for the mistreatment of these workers.
5. Unions and labor rights organizations along with South Asian diaspora groups in the U.S. join us in demanding justice for the workers and hold BAPS accountable.
6. Regulators and temple members across the world take concrete steps to ensure that all new BAPS structures are ethically built. That all temple workers enjoy health and safety protections and all of the temple workers are paid fairly for their labor.

Temples in the U.S. have long served as centers of resilience and community for diaspora populations. Yet, BAPS temple workers were exploited, forced to endure brutal working conditions, and subjected to systemic discrimination while building the Robbinsville temple. The civil case is still moving forward, and the fight for justice is far from over. We call on all allies to join us in demanding accountability, reclaiming stolen wages, and securing justice for the surviving workers and the families of those who lost their lives.

For further information, please contact:
dalitsolidarityforum@gmail.com
Photo Credit: Painting by Jaspreet Mahal