Raid finds 19 of 21 inmates missing from Hardoi home
More tales of horror tumbled out of the shelter home in Deoria on Tuesday even as the State was rocked by a similar scandal in Hardoi, where19 out of the 21 shelter home inmates were found missing.
In lucknow too, one of the inmates in a shelter home was found missing.
In Deoria, one of the shelter home girls revealed that the shelter home was used for human trafficking and inmates were supplied to clients in overseas countries. Recently some Spainish citizens visited the place and purchased four boys and a girl and took them away, an inmate told the police.
The medical examination of 20 of the inmates shocked authorities as they learnt that 10 of them were adults, but they were kept in the shelter home meant only for minors. The examination also confirmed sexual exploitation.
The inmates also disclosed that they were given poor quality food and were assaulted and abused. They also alleged that the girls were sent to lucknow and Gorakhpur for sexual exploitation for which they were paid Rs 500 to Rs 1,000.
Interestingly, Girija Tripathi, who was running the shelter home and was arrested, has exposed how authorities were facilitating her to run the home.
“I want to ask the Government that when the shelter home was cancelled by the Centre on June 23, 2017, why did the administration kept 709 girls since then at the home,” Girija Tripathi asked.
She added that in the last two years, they forcibly kept 337 women or girls over 18 years in her shelter home when it was meant just for minors. Tripathi said all 10 adult girls rescued on Sunday night were lodged by the police.
Meanwhile, District Magistrate of Hardoi Pulkit Khari raided a shelter home at Beniganj area on direction of Chief minister Yogi Adityanath and was shocked to find most of the inmates were missing under mysterious circumstances.
Sources said that when Khare reached the shelter home on Monday night and checked the register, he found the names of 21 inmates but on physical inspection, he was shocked to find only two inmates were present there.
The shelter home run by Ayesha Gramudyog Samiti is owned by Pihani lohani. When Khari enquired about the missing inmates, the superintendent claimed that she had no information about their whereabouts. The DM also found inadequate facilities at the shelter home. Sources said that Khari later ordered an enquiry into the matter.
Sources added that in lucknow too, ACM (I) Praful Tripathi raided a Government-run women protection home at Prag Narain Road and found one of the inmates missing. On enquiry, an attendant said that the inmate was not seen after July 29. Superintendent of the home Aarti Singh was not available so the DM ordered a magisterial enquiry.