Mumbai police crack human trafficking case, 21 children rescued

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The Special Juvenile Police Unit (SJPU) of the Mumbai Crime Branch rescued 21 children from the clutches of human traffickers on Saturday. The children, who were brought to Mumbai from Bihar and Nepal, were rescued in a joint operation by the police, and a non-government organisation (NGO).

A police source said the boys (aged between 13 and 15), were brought in a general compartment of the Karmabhoomi Express, which they boarded at Raxaul railway station in Bihar. "Some were seen seated on the floor under the washbasin, while some were seated outside the washrooms. All the children were terrified," the source said.

The police had received a tip-off that the children, trafficked from Nepal and Bihar, would reach Mumbai on Saturday morning. Joint commissioner of police (crime) Ashutosh Dumbare and DCP (enforcement) Rajendra Dabhade formed a team led by Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Ramchandra Mane. The sources said the traffickers got off the Karmabhoomi Express at Thane and boarded a local train for Mulund.

"Our sources were following them. The accused and the kids got down at Mulund. We had laid a trap and arrested all the five accused and rescued the children," said an officer.

"Out of 21 children, eight boys were trafficked from Nepal, whereas 13 were trafficked from Bihar. All of them boarded Karmabhoomi Express from Raxaul for Mumbai," said Mane.

Two yet to be held
The police have arrested five human traffickers in connection with the case. They include Mohammad Sadiq Hasan Mansuri, Sukeshwar Jali Raut, Mohammad Ekhlak Amir Hasan, Zafar Ali Haji Shaikh and Abdul Barik Abdul Gani Shaikh. Sources said their two accomplices are yet to be arrested.

"The accused are from Bihar and supply minors for work in factories, tea stalls, garages etc.," the officer said. The rescued children have been sent to Dongri Children's Home after medical examinations. The investigators are scanning the call data records of all the accused. "The traffickers convince poverty-stricken families to send their children to work in cities for money," an officer said.

The case has been registered at Navghar police station and the accused have been booked under section 370 (1) (trafficking of a minor) of IPC and 75, 79 of Juvenile Justice Act.

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