Seventy-four women from Andhra Pradesh, including 16 minors, were rescued from brothels in central Delhi’s GB Road area on Monday, police said.
The operation, one of the biggest in the last six months, was conducted by a joint team of the Delhi Police and CBCID of Andhra Pradesh state
police. It was carried out between 11am and 11:30am.
“We conducted the operation after we were intimidated about the presence of a large number of women, who had been forcibly trafficked from their homes in Andhra Pradesh and were being pushed into prostitution, by NGOs,” said a senior police officer.
According to the police, the parents or relatives of many women, who have been rescued, had registered missing complaints back home.
At least a dozen people, who were present at the brothels while the raids were conducted, have been detained.
“As per information, many victims were lured to the Capital by acquaintances, on the pretext of jobs or marriage, and forced into prostitution. Detentions have been made to ascertain the relationship of these people with the victims,” the officer said.
Meanwhile, as those detained were whisked away to the Kamla Market police station for questioning, the rescued minors were produced before the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) before being taken to a juvenile home.
“The adult women who were trafficked have been taken to Nari Niketan in west Delhi’s Hari Nagar area. A case has been registered,” the officer said. Monday’s operation is the fourth this year.
On January 18, two girls, including a minor, who were allegedly trafficked from West Bengal, were rescued.
Just a week before that, nine girls, all from west Bengal, had been rescued by a DelhiPolice team. More than 130 such victims from different parts of the country had been rescued last year.