Bangalore shocker: Virgin hunters on the prowl in sin city

Virgins are in demand in your city but not as brides.

Pimps are hunting for virgin girls in and around Bangalore, usually those from poor families. And the customers are rich enough to pay up to Rs 1.5 lakh for a few hours of sex with a virgin. That, for some is a new high and for others, a belief that it helps cure one of sexually-transmitted diseases.

There are no police cases yet but NGOs working with sex workers point to this growing trend among the city’s rich and powerful. The deal, they say, is simple enough. Pimps look for girls who are about to get married and whose parents cannot afford dowry or other wedding-related expenses. They introduce these victims to their wealthy clients, who in most cases, are either builders or politicians. 

Said an activist with an NGO that works with sex workers in the Majestic area: “There are a lot of girls in the city who have agreed to sleep with builders or politicians for a few hours to ease their parents’ burden. Parents, who have no ways to arrange the dowry, persuade their children to have sex with the financier. This is happening not just in Bangalore but in rural areas too.” The activist requested that her name be withheld.

A similar case recently took place in Devanahalli. “The parents were poor and were unable to arrange money for the marriage expenses and a dowry amount of Rs1 lakh. A pimp who supplies women to builders contacted the mother of the bride and explained his idea of arranging the money. She agreed for Rs1.5 lakh to allow her virgin daughter to sleep with a man from Hassan who has political affiliations,” the activist said.

“The girl was first taken for a virginity test. On the appointed day, the mother came along with her daughter to a resort near Devanahalli. While the financier led the girl to the room, the mother waited outside. An hour later, the financier arranged the girl and mother to be dropped near their house,” she continued.

Advocate Anjali Rammanna, who runs an NGO called Asthitva, said volunteers have found out that such acts are encouraged by parents, in most cases, the mother, to meet marriage expenses. “This is sickening,” she said.

The belief that having sex with virgins would heal sexually-transmitted disease also plays a big role in people asking for virgin bedmates.

B Vijay Kumar, secretary, Society for People's Action for Development (SPAD), said: “Most of the people who look out for virgins are HIV+. They think having sex with virgins will cure their disease. The rich are willing to pay huge amounts to young women but they are putting their lives in peril. This is inhuman and awareness has to be raised against such practices.”