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56 women rescued, 2 held for human trafficking from train in Bengal's Jalpaiguri
The women were misled by false job offers. Two suspects were arrested after failing to explain the women's travel to Bihar.
Fifty-six women aged between 18 and 31 were rescued from a suspected human trafficking operation aboard a train at New Jalpaiguri station in West Bengal on Monday night, news agency PTI reported.
The women were found travelling together on the New Jalpaiguri-Patna Capital Express without valid tickets on them. Authorities said they are from Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar, and Alipurduar districts of West Bengal and were misled by promises of employment in Bengaluru.
According to officials, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) became suspicious during a routine check of the train when they noticed an unusually large group of young women occupying the same coach.
Each had only coach and berth numbers stamped on their hands, but no travel documents. “During questioning, several inconsistencies emerged in their accounts,” an RPF official said.
“None of them could produce offer letters or any official documentation supporting claims of job placement in Bengaluru,” the official added.
The situation escalated when a man and a woman accompanying the group failed to provide convincing answers and gave contradictory statements about the purpose of the journey. They were immediately taken into custody.
Authorities are now investigating a possible human trafficking link.
The Government Railway Police (GRP) and RPF have launched a joint probe to determine the extent of the operation and identify others involved.
“All the women have since been handed over to their families,” officials confirmed.
The incident has raised concerns about growing trafficking networks exploiting the promise of employment to lure vulnerable individuals, particularly from underdeveloped regions.
