BJP chief Malik raises issue of human trafficking in RSS

Ravi S. Singh

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 2

Raising the issue in Rajya Sabha of "large-scale" human trafficking from Punjab to foreign countries, state BJP president Shwait Malik on Thursday sought the Centre's intervention to take effective action against unauthorised travel agents who are behind the problem.

He batted for deputing a Central agency to monitor the human trafficking racket, aided and abetted by fake agents by duping innocent people.

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Bringing up the issue during "Zero Hour", Malik charged the state government with not taking enough measures against the fake agents, who lure people in the name of getting them jobs abroad.

The agents charge somewhere a package of Rs 25 lakh to Rs 50 lakh per person to arrange for journey and job. "Although the number of authorised agents operating in Punjab is 11,000, there are thousands with doubtful credentials," Malik said, terming the situation as grave.

The BJP leader added that since April 2017, criminals cases have been registered against only 700 persons (fake agents).

"Youths are also cheated in the name of ensuring them education facilities in foreign countries. The victims meet fatal tragedies while on journey," he said, citing reports of drowning of youth from Hoshiarpur along the cost of Panama in a bid to cross over to US illegally. Before this were reports of six men form different villages of Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur and Amritsar missing in the Bahamas, while trying to enter US. 

"Several mothers have lost their children," Malik said. He also cited abduction and mass killing of 39 Indians, mostly from Punjab, by ISIS in Mosul in Iraq.

The victims are held captive, exploited in all sorts of way, and treated as bonded labourers in foreign countries.  Their passports are also taken away by employers to ensure that they cannot escape.