The protesters alleged that the reported proposal by the Finance Department to suspend the implementation of the revised minimum wages was anti-worker, unconstitutional and contrary to the provisions of the Minimum Wages Act. The AIUTUC maintained that the Karnataka High Court had declined to grant any interim stay on the revised minimum wage notification despite petitions filed by employers’ associations. The memorandum also stated that financial constraints could not be cited as a valid reason for denying minimum wages, referring to Supreme Court rulings which held that employers, including governments, were legally bound to pay statutory minimum wages irrespective of financial difficulties. It also argued that withholding the revised wages would violate Articles 21 and 23 of the Constitution as well as the spirit of ILO Convention No. 131 on minimum wage fixing.