14-year-old girl among 5 rescued from prostitution racket by police

Five women, including a 14-year-old girl and another who was six months pregnant, were rescued from a prostitution racket during a raid by the Outer North Delhi Police on Wednesday.

During counselling, the 14-year-old revealed that she had been lured into the trade by an acquaintance earlier this month. “Because of financial issues at home, I asked a lady to help me find work in a factory. Instead, she introduced me to Ranjeeta, who was running a similar racket,” she said.

The child recounted how, after initially refusing, she was persuaded that the work would bring quick money. “They told me I could earn enough to solve our problems. I was asked to see one or two clients a day and paid Rs 1,000,” she explained. Subsequently, she was moved to Swaroop Nagar, where she received only Rs 300 daily while others kept the rest. She confirmed that her parents were unaware of the situation. The girl has since been shifted to a childcare home and will be presented before the Child Welfare Committee.

The rescue and raid team arrested three people, including a middle-aged woman, accused of operating the racket from the flat in Swaroop Nagar in Delhi. An FIR has been lodged against the accused under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act 1956.

Another rescued woman, who said she was 25 and six-months pregnant, appeared considerably younger. As she refused to produce documents, medical tests will be conducted to verify her age.

Outer North Delhi DCP Hareshwar Swami raided the flat after the tip-off and information was provided by the Association for Voluntary Action, an NGO working on anti-trafficking and anti-slavery.

Manish Sharma of AVA said: “Our team had been tracking this racket for weeks. Another team posed as customers to build contact with the middleman. After a few days, the pimp demanded Rs 10,000 for supplying four minor girls. That is when we alerted the police.”

Association for Voluntary Action (AVA) is a partner of Just Rights for Children, which is the country’s largest network of over 250 NGOs working for child protection in 434 districts across the country.