In recent times around 52 women of different age groups have been trafficked to the district and sold for lakhs of rupees, reveals a rescued woman
MANASH PRATIM DUTTA
GUWAHATI, Feb 4: Jhunjhunu district in Rajasthan has turned into a hotbed for traffickers for supply of women and young girls from Assam and other north-eastern states in their dozens, revealed a trafficking victim who was rescued by Guwahati Police recently.
According to the victim (name withheld), in recent times around 52 women of different age groups have been trafficked to the district and sold for lakhs of rupees. The trafficked women, especially the young girls, were bought by the locals of the district to marry as the population of young girls there is small.
Narrating her ordeal, the rescued woman said, “Earlier I used to work at a private school in the city as a helper. In September last year, I got a call from a woman who introduced herself as Lalita Devi from Bongaigaon. After a few days of conversation over phone, one day she offered me a job in Rajasthan and I agreed to the proposal.”
Upon being directed by Lalita Devi, on the day of the journey to Rajasthan, the victim first went to Lalmati area of the city where she met a young man who introduced himself as the brother of Lalita. From Lalmati they went to the Guwahati Railway Station.
“At the railway station I met two girls and we four boarded a train. After some time the boy, who introduced himself as Hasmat, gave us some fruit juice. Soon after drinking the juice I fell unconscious. When I regained my senses I found myself in New Delhi. From New Delhi Lalita Devi took me to Rajasthan,” the rescued woman said.
She revealed that Lalita Devi, a mother of six children, runs a garment shop at Thali village in Jhunjhunu district from where she also runs the trafficking business. She stayed with Lalita for about a month. During that time the trafficker subjected her to immense mental and physical torture.
“At the shop I discovered documents, including PAN cards, voter cards, etc., having names of different girls and all of them were trafficked by the gang from the North East.
The trafficked girls were sold for lakhs of rupees. I even came to know that some time earlier a 14-year-old girl from Assam had been sold for Rs 14 lakh by the gang. Similarly, in October 2020 they sold me for Rs 1.5 lakh to one Jonda Ram Guljar from Mandabara village of the same district. The man bought me with an intent to marry me. He had been forcing me to get married at the court, but I refused persistently. A few days later I managed to call up my mother from Jonda’s phone and ultimately the police rescued me from the hell,” the rescued woman told The Assam Tribune.
Along with the victim, Guwahati Police also rescued another girl hailing from Goalpara district, from the same village (Mandabara). She was sold by her husband to the traffickers’ gang in January this year. Based on the complaint filed by the family of the rescued woman, the police arrested Lalita Devi and Jonda Ram Guljar from Rajasthan.
Meanwhile, in another development, one more girl from Goalpara district was learnt to have been rescued by the local authority of Rajasthan on Thursday.
