Girls rescued from bar falsely booked: Parents

“We are concerned about these girls. You (government) too better look into it,” remarked Justice J.N. Patel on Wednesday while hearing a petition filed by parents of two girls rescued from a bar.

“We are concerned about these girls. You (government) too better look into it,” remarked Justice J.N. Patel on Wednesday while hearing a petition filed by parents of two girls rescued from a bar.

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On February 25, Shridevi Chhari’s 20-year-old daughter was rescued from Baba Palace Bar at Chembur.

Chhari, a resident of Gwalior, filed a petition in the Bombay High Court seeking custody of her 20-year-old daughter who was rescued from Baba Palace Bar and Restaurant in Chembur on February 25.

After being produced before the magistrate on February 26, the girl was kept at the Navjeevan Mahila Home, Chembur. She was booked under the Immoral Trafficking (Prevention) Act for allegedly indulging in prostitution.

Chhari claimed that her daughter was working as a waitress at the restaurant.

She sought their daughter’s custody, claiming that she is a major. As a proof they had attached her birth certificate issued in Gwalior.

The magistrate had sent the girl for ossification test to determine her age. The report said that she was aged between 14-years to 16-years.

Chhari’s application was rejected.

A similar petition was filed by Nepal-resident Kanchanman Tamang, whose daughter was also rescued on November 25.

The petition is signed by two other parents whose daughters were majors when rescued. They have all been lodged at the Chembur remand home.

Tamang’s lawyer A. Holmagi had argued that the girls were wrongly booked as they did not indulge in prostitution.

The girls were tortured at the remand home, alleges the petition.

The Bombay High Court asked additional government pleader Poornima Kantharia to file a reply in two weeks.