14-year-old among five rescued from prostitution racket in Outer Delhi

New Delhi, Aug 28 (PTI) Five women, including a 14-year-old girl, were rescued from a prostitution racket during a police raid in Outer North Delhi's Swaroop Nagar, an official said on Thursday.

The operation was carried out following a tip-off from the Association for Voluntary Action (AVA), whose members had been posing as decoy customers for weeks to gather details, police said.

Three persons, including a middle-aged woman, were arrested for allegedly running the racket from a flat and a case has been registered under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, according to the officer.

During counselling, the minor told officials that she was lured into the trade by an acquaintance earlier this month. She had approached a woman seeking employment in a factory due to financial difficulties at home. The woman allegedly took her to another person who was running a similar racket.

"When I refused, they convinced me that there is a lot of money in it. I would attend one or two clients daily and get Rs 1,000," she told counsellors.

The girl said she was later shifted to Swaroop Nagar, where she was paid Rs 300 per day while the rest of the money was kept by others involved. She has been moved to a childcare home and will be produced before the Child Welfare Committee, the police said.

Another victim, who said she was 25 years old, appeared much younger to the rescue team, the official said. Since she did not provide any documents to establish her age, further medical examination will be conducted, he added.

Manish Sharma, Director of AVA, said, "Our team on the ground informed us about this racket a few weeks ago. Another team posed as a customer and built trust with the middleman. When the pimp demanded Rs 10,000 for supplying four minor girls, we informed the police." He said the raid, led by Outer North Delhi DCP Hareshwar Swami, was conducted promptly.

"Such action ensures that minor children are not trafficked and lured into these traps. However, this is not an isolated case in Swaroop Nagar.

“Similar rackets have been busted earlier too. Unless strict action is taken, such gangs will not be deterred," he added.

AVA, a partner of Just Rights for Children, is part of a network of more than 250 NGOs working for child protection across 434 districts in the country.

Last month, the organisation had tipped off the police about a similar racket in Dwarka, which led to the rescue of a 16-year-old girl. PTI SHB SHB KSS KSS