Six minors victims of “trafficking” from Jharkhand to Delhi, rescued

Six minor girls from Jharkhand who were being brought on a train to the capital by suspected traffickers were rescued on May 29 after an alert co-passenger, who works as a counselor at Delhi's Jharkhand Bhawan, tipped off authorities.

Nirmala Khalko, who has worked closely with trafficked children from Jharkhand, said she called authorities, who rescued the minors after the train arrived in Delhi, after noticing that the children seemed distressed when speaking to their parents and spoke with a distinct Delhi accent. that of the alleged traffickers, who claimed to be relatives of the victim.

The minors, aged between 12 and 17, are currently in the custody of a Child Welfare Committee (CWC) and their statements are being recorded for further investigation, a senior police officer said. The girls belong to Gumla and Simdega districts of Jharkhand.

Chance meeting

Ms Khalko said she and the minors and their alleged traffickers boarded the Jharkhand Swarna Jayanti Express from Ranchi on May 28. Shortly after they took their places – three minors with a woman in the seat opposite that of Ms Khalko – in the sleeper coach, the manager of the Jharkhand Bhawan struck up a conversation with her fellow passengers and then alerted authorities.

Over the next few hours, the Jharkhand Bhawan official collected information about the three minors and learned that there were three other minors in the compartment. They were rescued when the train reached Anand Vihar station, Ms. Khalko said.

The complainant said she noticed the girls seemed upset when talking to their custody parents.