Mumbai: Two survivors of human trafficking have moved the Bombay High Court, claiming only brothel managers are arrested and chargesheeted, but the trafficker and transporter who play major roles in trafficking women and children are never booked.
One of them, who was trafficked as a minor and rescued the same year, said no case was registered against the traffickers or arrests made despite providing the police with names. The other was subjected to commercial sexual exploitation for six years.
The criminal PIL filed by them claims registration and investigation of human trafficking under IPC sections 370 (buying or disposing of any person as a slave/trafficking of persons) and 372 (selling a minor for purposes of prostitution) are neglected. Claiming that most cases related to inter-State human trafficking are not investigated and no attempt is made to identify and apprehend offenders from other States, the PIL says the State government is yet to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with other States and Union Territories for co-operation in investigating and prosecuting such cases.
The PIL also accuses the State government of complete failure in setting up anti-human trafficking units at the district level, and seeks the appointment of special investigating officers under the Immoral Trafficking Prevention Act in districts. It also seeks directions to the local police to provide these officers with assistance.
The duo’s petition claims that in several cases of human trafficking, especially those registered in Pune, Mumbai, Thane and Palghar, investigating agencies have not implicated persons known or unknown who allegedly committed offences under IPC sections 370, 371 (habitual dealing in slaves), 372 and 375 (rape) as they were registered before prior to the law’s amendment in 2013. It says in all cases registered in the State, only brothel mangers and owners are named as accused, arrested, charge sheeted and prosecuted.
The PIL also refers to government records, according to which nearly 3.25 lakh children were reported missing between 2011 and 2014. Of these, nearly two lakh were girls. Data from 2013 with the National Crime Records Bureau Record says 3,940 cases of human trafficking were registered in India. This rose by 38.7% in 2014 to 5,466 and to 6877 cases in 2015, in which approximately 9,127 victims were rescued.
