Federal agents descended on the massive temple in Robbinsville, New Jersey, as a lawsuit claimed low-caste men had been lured from India to work for about $1 an hour.
NEW YORK – Federal law enforcement agents descended on a massive temple in New Jersey on Tuesday after workers accused a prominent Hindu sect of luring them from India, confining them to the temple grounds and paying them the equivalent of about $1 an hour to perform grueling labor in near servitude.
In a lawsuit filed on Tuesday, lawyers for the laborers said Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, a Hindu sect known as BAPS that has close ties to Indiaâs ruling party and has built temples around the world, had exploited possibly hundreds of low-caste men in the yearslong construction project, reported New York Times.
Qué es BAPS, la secta hindú en la mira del FBI por la construcción de un imponente templo en Estados Unidos infobae.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from infobae.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Federal agents on Tuesday visited a Hindu temple in New Jersey after workers alleged they were lured to work there and confined to the premise, forced to perform work for the equivalent of about $1 an hour.
The New York Times reports that lawyers representing the workers on Tuesday filed a lawsuit in which they accuse the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha Hindu sect known as BAPS of exploiting hundreds of low-caste men in the construction project. The Times notes that most of the workers are Dalits, who belong to India s lowest caste.
“The FBI is there on court authorized law enforcement activity. No further comment, FBI spokeswoman Doreen Holder told local station New Jersey 101.5 in a statement.
US Hindu sect BAPS accused of using Dalit labour The workers, who lived in trailers hidden from view, had been promised jobs helping to build the temple with standard work hours and ample time off
Federal law enforcement agents descended on a massive temple in New Jersey on Tuesday after workers accused a prominent Hindu sect of luring them from India, confining them to the temple grounds and paying them the equivalent of about $1 an hour to perform gruelling labour in near servitude.
In a lawsuit filed on Tuesday, lawyers for the labourers said Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, a Hindu sect known as BAPS that has close ties to India’s ruling party and has built temples around the world, had exploited possibly hundreds of low-caste men in the years-long construction project.