Noida: Mother, employer among 5 booked for child labour, assault of 11-year-old girl

As the couple also hails from the same village in Jharkhand, her mother agreed to allow the girl to work for them and collected ₹5,000 from the couple every month as the girl’s salary, police said

A day after an 11-year-old girl was rescued by police from a high-rise in Sector 137 where she was allegedly forced into child labour and subjected to assault, police booked five people, including her mother and her employer couple, on charges of causing hurt and child labour, senior officers said on Wednesday.

During questioning before ChildLine officials, the girl said she was repeatedly assaulted by the couple and forced to do household work. (Representational image)

On Monday morning, a resident of Logix Blossom County spotted a minor crying near the garden. When the girl was told to return home, she refused, saying her employer would assault her if she went home. The resident then called police and later ChildLine.

“As we came to know that the child was working as a help at a house in Logix Blossom County, ChildLine was informed for the safety of the girl,” said Pushparaj Singh, station house officer, Sector 142.

“During investigation, it came to fore that the girl belonged to a village in Bokara, Jharkhand. Her father died, and her mother married again. Then the girl was hired by a Noida-based couple, Shahjahan and Ruksana.”

Police on Wednesday night arrested Shahjahan, 38. Heruns a shop in Noida.

“As the couple also hails from the same village in Jharkhand, her mother agreed to allow the girl to work for them and collected ₹5,000 from the couple every month as the girl’s salary,” said a senior police officer, asking not to be named. The girl’s maternal uncle and aunt (unidentified) were also involved in getting the child into domestic labour.

During questioning before ChildLine officials, the girl said she was repeatedly assaulted by the couple and forced to do household work.

The minor was also assigned to take care of the couple’s newborn, said SHO Singh, adding that no arrest has been made yet and the girl is residing under the supervision of ChildLine.

A case under sections 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and 14(1) (hires a child or lets a child work illegally) of the Child Labour Act was registered at Sector 142 police station, and further investigation is underway, said BS Veer Singh, assistant commissioner of police, Central Noida.