NEW DELHI: Three persons, including a woman, were arrested for allegedly running a human trafficking racket, with the police rescuing 16 people who were forced to work as bonded labourers in central Delhi, the police said today.
On August 17, a joint team of police and officials from some departments of the Delhi government conducted a rescue operation in Ranjit Nagar.
The premises of a placement agency was raided and seven bonded labourers, including two minors, were rescued, the police said.
The agency was being run by one Rambilas Paswan (32) who was not present in his office. A case was registered and investigation taken up.
Subsequent raids were conducted in association with an NGO.
Nine more persons -- three women, a man and five children -- were rescued from various places in Delhi and nearby states, including Himachal Pradesh and Haryana, said Mandeep Singh Randhawa, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central).
The rescued persons hail from remote areas of Assam, Tripura and Jharkhand, he added.
The rescued persons said that they were taken to Delhi on the pretext of providing them with good jobs and handsome salaries but instead they were subjected to severe mental and physical cruelty, said the officer.
The victims were neither allowed to go out nor were any wages paid to them.
Anita Paswan, Rambilas' wife, was arrested on August 19 for her involvement in the racket.
Her husband was evading arrest but was subsequently nabbed on October 13 from Ranjit Nagar. On the same day, another accused, Suresh Chakma, was arrested from Munirka here, said the DCP.
Chakma used to induce people in Assam and Tripura with fake promises and transport them to Delhi where Rambilas used to take their custody and force them to work without wages.