Inter-state sex racket busted in Shimla

Bhanu P Lohumi
Tribune News Service
Shimla, September 13

The police today claimed to have busted an inter-state sex racket in Shimla with the arrest of a person (the alleged supplier). They also rescued two girls.  

Following a tip-off that one Varinder Singh, a resident of SAS Nagar, Zirakpur, was providing girls for prostitution in Shimla, the police contacted him through WhatsApp, posing as decoy customers last night.

He agreed to send two girls for Rs 12,000 each for a night after receiving Rs 1,000 through online banking and Rs 2,000 in cash as advance, said Shimla ASP Parveer Thakur.

A case under Section 4 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act and 370 IPC has been registered at the  Dhalli police station. Both girls hail from Punjab.

The police also impounded the vehicle (PB 65 AU 9321) in which the girls were sent. The accused, Varinder Singh, will be produced in a local court. “The accused is being interrogated for further details,” police sources said. 

This is not the first case of sex racket being busted in Shimla. On November 18, 2018, the Shimla police had busted an inter-state flesh trade racket and arrested eight persons, including six girls (one of them a foreigner), a manager and a caretaker of the “massage centre” on the posh Mall Road. The alleged flesh trade racket was being run in the garb of a “spa” (massage centre) at a distance of just 200 m from the police reporting room.

On June 2, 2018, another sex racket was busted and two persons, including the kingpin of the gang, were arrested from a guest house in the busy Ram Bazaar area in the heart of the city. 

The woman running illegal business hailed from Uttar Pradesh and had been staying in Shimla for the past few years. 

The modus operandi was to hire a room in guest houses for illegal activities.

Recently, posters offering Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000 per month for a gigolo (male prostitute) were also found in public toilets in Shimla.

Cops contacted accused on WhatsApp

• Following a tip-off that one Varinder Singh, a resident of SAS Nagar, Zirakpur, was providing girls for prostitution in Shimla, the police contacted him through WhatsApp, posing as decoy customers on Thursday night
• He agreed to send two girls for Rs 12,000 each for a night after receiving Rs 1,000 through online banking and Rs 2,000 in cash as advance

Over 200 sites ‘offering escort services’

There are over 200 sites allegedly offering escort services to tourists and residents in the state. Now, a few websites are also offering gigolos. These sites are operated through conduits from outside the state. The preferred locations include tourist destinations like Shimla, Kasauli, McLeodgunj, Kullu, Manali, Dharamsala, Mandi and Dalhousie