Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni addressed the Italian Parliament on June 26 over the fate of an illegal Indian farm worker who died from injuries after his employer abandoned him by the roadside.
Satnam Singh, in his early 30s, succumbed to his injuries after he severed his hand in a hay-cutting machine on a farm in Latina, central Italy, on June 17. The BBC also reported that his legs were also crushed.
Ms. Meloni said that Mr. Singh was the victim of “inhuman acts” and vowed harsh punishments for those found guilty over the incident amid calls for prompt action from India’s government.
“These are inhumane acts that do not belong to the Italian people. I hope that this barbarity will be punished harshly,” Ms. Meloni said.
Instead of being taken to a hospital for emergency medical treatment, Mr. Singh was allegedly left on the side of the road with his wife by his employer, Italian media reported. His severed hand was left in a fruit box, and he was reportedly left on the roadside for an hour and a half.
Local media reports said Mr. Singh’s wife and friends alerted the police. He was eventually flown to a hospital in Rome, some 40 miles away, where he later died from his injuries.
Muktesh Pardeshi, a consular official, said the Indian Embassy in Italy had established contact with Mr. Singh’s remaining family in India to provide consular assistance and arrange to repatriate Mr. Singh’s remains. He called for prompt action against those responsible.
Condemnation of the incident was also expressed by other Italian parliament members, including Labor Minister Marina Calderone, who referred to it as an “act of barbarity.”
“The Indian agricultural worker who suffered a serious accident in the countryside of Latina and was abandoned in very serious conditions … has died,” she said, addressing members of the Italian parliament.
Italy’s opposition Democratic Party also criticized the harsh conditions under which Mr. Singh was working under.
Following Mr. Singh’s death, his employer, Antonello Lovato, is being investigated for criminal negligence and manslaughter.
BBC reported that Mr. Lovato’s father told Italian media: “My son had told [Mr. Singh] not to go near the machinery, but he didn’t listen.”
NTD has not been able to verify these reports independently.
