Ten women from Nepal, who were lured with job prospects in India but deceived by traffickers into flesh trade, will finally get a new lease of life, as they fly back to where they belong, on January 13.
Ten women from Nepal, who were lured with job prospects in India but deceived by traffickers into flesh trade, will finally get a new lease of life, as they fly back to where they belong, on January 13.
However, not all are as lucky as them and some will be left here in India, either in a brothel, jail or a shelter home. To fight for the rights of sex workers, a couple of NGOs are seeking legal assistance to file a public interest litigation (PIL) in the high court.
Najma Asadi, an advocate with Human Rights Law Network, which is giving legal assistance to these NGOs said, “During our interventions in criminal law with prisoners, we realised that there was a consistent number of cases foisted on women from Nepal, northeast in India and West Bengal. The petition states they are being trafficked via the Mumbai airport. Unlike certain other countries where the victims are not prosecuted but protected, we in India cannot claim such evolved jurisprudence. Hence, the idea is to approach the Bombay high court with a PIL with Maiti India as one of the petitioners, asking for guidelines to be laid down by the court, so that women victims of trafficking are provided with protection and treated as victims and not accused.”
According to Asadi, most of these women are usually jailed after being caught by the immigration office for travelling on fake passports. However, most of them are illiterate and are handed over the passports just a few hours before the journey.
“They are mainly suffering due to the nexus between the traffickers, placement agencies and travel agents. We would want not just guidelines to streamline human behaviour for them but also wish that once they are released from jail, they are handed over to the Rescue Foundation or other women’s welfare organisations to send them home safely, so that they are not trapped by the traffickers again,” said an office-bearer of Rescue Foundation.
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