A 12-year-old girl from Bangladesh, who ran away from home, was rescued from the clutches of prostitution racket carried out in Naigao, near Vasai in Palghar district of Maharashtra.
The rescue took place on July 26 during a joint operation by NGOs Exodus Road India Foundation and Harmony Foundation, working alongside the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit of the Mira-Bhayandar Vasai-Virar (MBVV) Police. So far, ten people have been arrested in the case, The Times of India reported.
According to officials, the girl revealed at a remand home that she had been taken to Nadiad in Gujarat, where she was sexually exploited by over 200 men within just three months. Abraham Mathai, founder-chairman of Harmony Foundation, expressed deep concern, saying that the girl, not even in her teenage years, had her childhood stolen by predators in the flesh trade.
"As the girl had failed in one subject in school, out of fear of her strict parents she decided to run away from home along with a woman who was an acquaintance. The woman sneaked her into India and pushed her into flesh trade," TOI quoted Mathai as saying.
The girl was allegedly illegally trafficked across the border to Kolkata, where a fake Aadhaar card was made, he said, adding that she was then flown to Mumbai, where she was held captive in Naigaon, according to a report by Deccan Chronicle.
“At Naigaon she stayed with an old man and his wife along with 7 to 8 girls. One day the old man gave her an injection and raped her and since then she was offered to many unknown customers without her consent,” a statement from Harmony Foundation said.
Police commissioner Niket Kaushik assured that MBVV police is "using its full force to unearth the entire network and ensure a safe environment for vulnerable adolescents".
Mathai further said that this girl’s ordeal is far from isolated. “Behind every such rescue is a child unheard, failed first by protectors, then by a society that reacts too late.” He warned that parental strictness, even with good intent, can create barriers instead of understanding.
“I’ve often seen minor girls begging in Vashi and Belapur, many stolen as infants from villages, brought to cities, and exploited. They’re controlled by one or two older women who also force them into prostitution. Some are even given hormonal injections to induce early puberty, accelerating abuse,” activist Madhu Shankar was quoted by TOI as saying.
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