JAJPUR: A young Bangladeshi girl, forced into prostitution in Kolkata, was rescued by Dharmasala police on Monday night. Police arrested the youth who had allegedly eloped with her but his father, who had forced the girl into flesh trade, is still at large.
Prime accused, Ajay Das of Nuagaon in Jajpur, is untraceable and efforts are on to nab him, police said. As per the complaint lodged by the 22-year-old girl, Ajay had brought her from Bangladesh to work as domestic help in his house two years back. During her short stay (a couple of days) in Ajay’s house, his son Suraj fell in love with her.
Later, Ajay allegedly took the girl to Kolkata and forced her into prostitution. When Suraj came to know about her plight, he went to Kolkata and eloped with her to Bangalore where the couple stayed for one year. During the first Covid wave last year, they returned to Jajpur and stayed in a rented house in Jaraka bazaar.
However, the private company in which Suraj worked was closed due to the lockdown. In the meantime, Ajay came to know about his son and the girl. On Sunday, he reached Jaraka bazaar and allegedly assaulted the girl before forcibly taking his son with him.
The incident came to light after the owner of the couple’s rented house Sabitri Sahoo saw the girl weeping on Monday. On being asked, the victim narrated her ordeal following which Sabitri informed the local police. Dharmasala Police rescued the girl and basing on her complaint, arrested Suraj. The victim was sent to the one-stop centre at Sakhi on Tuesday. Police said the girl has expressed her interest to return to her native place in Bangladesh.
Dharmasala IIC Saroj Kumar Sahoo said Ajay, a businessman, used to travel to Burdwan and Kolkata in West Bengal besides Bangladesh for trading purposes. During one such trip to Bangladesh, he brought the girl to India by promising her a job. Jajpur SP Rahul PR said, “The rescued girl’s credentials are being verified. If it is proved that she is from Bangladesh, steps will be taken to send her back to her homeland as per the diplomatic procedure.”