The Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) of Saraswati Vihar has alleged gross dereliction of duty on part of the Station House Officer (SHO) of Bharat Nagar Police station in registering a criminal case and raiding a place in Rohini to recover a trafficked girl on jurisdiction grounds.
Two girls were reportedly trafficked from Jharkhand and brought to the Capital to work as domestic helps. Things started moving only after the Deputy Commissioner of North-West district intervened and a raid was carried out to rescue the girls. The inaction of the police was reported despite the fact that there has been an uproar and concern over human trafficking.
Two girls started a journey from Jharkhand and were coming to Delhi. One of them was coming to meet her sister. On the train they met a person named ‘Kali’ who told them that he will take them to their destination safely.
On reaching Delhi, he handed over the girls to a placement agency. They were forced to work as domestic help in various parts of the city. One of the girls, who was working as a domestic help in Shakti Nagar Extension, somehow managed to contact her parents, who then informed her sister. The sister filed a complaint with the NGO which later approached the SDM.
One of the girls was rescued from Bharat Nagar and the placement agency was traced in Moti Nagar. The owner of the placement agency revealed that the other girl is working in Rohini Sector-7. The SHO of Bharat Nagar refused to lend support stating that the area does not fall in his jurisdiction. SDM MB Malhotra contacted SHO of Rohini, who then provided force and the girl was rescued. Both the girls were rescued on June 13.
“Behaviour of Bharat Nagar’s SHO was not appreciated as it came across that he was working as per his own whims and fancies. When he could accompany us till Moti Nagar, which also falls outside his jurisdiction then suddenly why did he deny accompanying to Rohini. It was one case that we all were dealing with. Only after we wrote to the senior authorities, an FIR was filed by the Bharat Nagar Police station. The co-operation was not up to the mark,” said MB Malhotra.
The SDM has written to the ACP, asking clarification as to which FIR is authenticated. Also, the District Magistrate has been requested for an independent enquiry.