LAHORE, Dec 26: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday freed six brick kiln workers and asked police to find another one who was reported to have gone missing from a kiln in Kharian.

The LHC ordered this while hearing a habeas corpus petition submitted by Mohammad Khalil, who also works at the brick kiln, owned by Chaudhry Sajjad Ahmad.

Justice Tariq Shamim directed the Kharian Sadar station house officer to find the missing worker, Mohammad Iqbal, and produce him in court on Jan 4.

The petitioner said the owner had confined the workers two-and-a-half months ago when they had refused to work without wages.

The petitioner said the workers had signed a contract with the kiln owner. But the owner taxed the workers and when they refused to work on less wages, they were intimidated and ultimately confined to a small room adjacent to the brick kiln.

The court deployed a bailiff who found six of the workers detained there while one of them had gone missing.

The owner submitted that the kiln workers had got their wages in advance with the promise that they would work against the advance money which should be deducted from their wages.

The court freed the workers, saying workers’ detention was a gross violation of the constitutional right to freedom. As for the money given in advance to the workers, the court said the owner should approach an appropriate court for recovery.

ABDUCTION: The LHC directed a Mandi Bahauddin SHO to find the abducted son of Shan Ali, a resident of Haillan, and produce him in the court on Dec 29.