A girl rescued by Haridwar Police and Uttarakhand Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the police from near a water tank near Bhagat Chowk in Haridwar on May 15, gave a heart-rending account of brutalities she suffered after reportedly being trafficked from Jharkhand.
On May 15, Ranipur police received information that a girl was lying in a hut in the area. She appeared to be in an appalling condition. A police team reached the spot and transported her to the government hospital.
Police said that the girl, who belonged to village Padaria under Birni police station of Giridih district in Jharkhand, alleged that she was forced into flesh trade after being trafficked from her village. The girl also alleged that she was gang-raped by four-five men during intervening night of May 14 and May 15.
She told the police that the kind of mental trauma she had suffered after falling prey to human trafficking could not be defined in words. Narrating her tale of woes, the girl told the police that in 2007, she tied the knot with Shrikrishna, a resident of village Rajoli in Nawada, Bihar. According to her, her alcoholic husband allegedly used to beat her very often.
Fed up with the abuse being meted out to her, she left her husband’s home and returned to her parents. In the meantime, she gave birth to a girl. The girl told police two persons, Parameshwar Das and Rajendra, both residents of Padaria, brought her to Delhi, promising her mother that marriage of her daughter would be solemnised in Delhi.
She disclosed to the police that duo sold her to Pradeep, a resident of Delhi, for Rs 45,000, pretending that he would tie the knot with her. She alleged that Pradeep used to beat her everyday and reportedly raped her several times. He also put her in a locked room. After suffering the inhuman acts for about a fortnight, she anyhow managed to escape from the clutches of Pradeep and reached a spot in Delhi which she is unable to name.
At the spot, the victim came across a woman Geeta who took the girl along with her. She changed her name. The woman had forcefully projected her own pimp as husband of the girl. She said that the woman tried to entice her into flesh trade but when the girl refused to comply with her demand, she forcibly locked her in a room where Mahendra, who was projected as her husband by Geeta, allegedly outraged her modesty.
Police said that the girl recalled that she was forced to sleep with several people for several days. From these persons, Geeta allegedly used to charge a fat sum. The girl claimed that Geeta ‘rented’ her to Sunita and Ram Kumar of Haridwar for a week for Rs 45,000. In Haridwar, where she was forced into flesh trade by the duo and allegedly raped by up to five people during May 14 and 15 near a hut in Bhagat Singh Chowk.
The police registered a case under relevant section of IPC and under Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act. Police have arrested four persons, including Sunita, Ramkumar, both residents of Haridwar, lalit a resident of Harijan Basti Delhi and Geeta, a resident of Samre of Banda, in this connection. Haridwar SSP Arun Mohan Joshi said that a police team has been formed to search for the four other accused in the case.
Police also arrested five persons who allegedly raped the girl. Police said that the arrested were identified as Irfan, Islam, Salim, residents of Ahbab Nagar, Saeed, Sabir, residents of Ahbab Nagar in Ranipur police station of Haridwar. The case is being investigated further.
DGP praises cops’ good work
Director General of police (DGP) Satyavrat praised the police team for good work. He personally monitored developments in the case since it was registered at the police station. The DGP praised deputy inspector general of police (Garhwal range) Amit Sinha for his proactive role in the matter. He said that the police did a good job by ensuring the arrest of the main accused in the case.