Sex racket busted in overnight raids at Arunachal resort, 4 women rescued

The resort manager, the owner, and several customers were also taken into custody for questioning, police said.

A sex racket has been busted during a raid at a resort, and four women were rescued in Roing in Arunachal Pradesh's Lower Dibang Valley district, an official said on Monday.

Four women, reportedly brought from Assam's Tinsukia region, were rescued and taken to the police station, police said. (Photo for representation) (Unsplash)

Acting on specific inputs about illegal activities, a team from Roing police station conducted a surprise raid at a resort in the Meka area on Sunday night. During the operation, four women, reportedly brought from Assam's Tinsukia region, were rescued and taken to the police station, Roing police station officer-in-charge Tania Uli said.

The resort manager, the owner, and several customers were also taken into custody for questioning, police said, adding that the individuals were caught engaged in prostitution during the raid.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the racket involved bringing women from outside the state, while most customers were residents, the official said.

Police said they had been receiving inputs and complaints from the public over the past few days regarding suspected immoral activities in the area.

A case has been registered at Roing Police Station under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Immoral Traffic Act , and further investigation is underway.

The OC said efforts are on to identify other persons linked to the racket and to curb such illegal activities in the district.

Meanwhile, Arunachal Pradesh Home Minister Mama Natung, in a social media post, praised the police team led by Ringu Ngupok for the raid and the subsequent rescue of four women.

"Our government maintains a zero-tolerance policy towards social evils and illegal activities," he said.

Natung said, "The establishment was found to be operating illegally without a license. Both the owner and manager have been detained, and a case has been registered to ensure the law takes its strictest course."

Lauding the police for their swift action, he said our government remains committed to keeping Arunachal safe and will continue to crack down on those who exploit others for profit.