Mumbai: Two women, pushed into flesh trade rescued by cops; lodge manager arrested

Dolphin Lodge in Nalasopara. Pic/Hanif Patel

Two women in their 20s, allegedly forced into flesh trade at a lodge in Nalasopara, were rescued by the Anti-Human Trafficking Cell (AHTC) of the Mira-Bhayander Vasai-Virar (MBVV) police on Friday. The lodge's manager, who was accused of pimping the women to clients, was also arrested in the operation.

The lodge, Dolphin Cottage, is located at Kalamb beach in Nalasopara West. An officer told mid-day that, lodge manager Vishal Shivaji Hire, 22, would lure male customers by showing them photos of young women. When AHTC officials got a tip-off, they laid out a trap to catch the accused red-handed. This was done under the supervision of DCP Crime Avinash Ambure, ACP Amol Mandve and Inspector Santosh Chaudhari of AHTC.

"We sent an undercover customer to the lodge to verify the information we had. Hire, who manages the lodge, showed a few photographs of some women to the customer and demanded money. After a deal was struck between the two, Hire brought two women to the spot and asked the customer to choose one of the two. We then caught Hire red-handed, and rescued the women" said an officer privy to the investigation.

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"Two more accused, including Dilip Laxman Gharat and Abhishek Babu Chandan, are wanted in this case. Efforts are being made to arrest them too," said the officer. The police have seized Hire's cellphone and found multiple photos and contact numbers of other women. "He had been running this racket since last year," an officer claimed.

Both the women have been sent to a rescue home in Boisar. "The manager would charge around R5,000 from a customer, and give only R500 to the woman," added the officer. The case is registered at Arnala police station under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act (PITA), 1956.

Rs 5,000
Money the pimp charged from customers per woman