On November 15th we got intel about a suspected minor being forced into prostitution in a red light area in Kolkata. The next day we were able to verify the victim was a minor. We met with an officer from the Anti Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) and after sharing our evidence, the officer agreed to initiate the raid the next day.
The next morning when we called the AHTU about the raid, we were told it would not be possible for a few days due to a law and order situation in the city. The AHTU asked us to contact them on November 21st, so we followed up accordingly and started to discuss several rescue strategies.
On November 22nd, we met with the various police teams that would be handling the raid. Around 3 pm, we left for Kalighat and at 3:51 pm the police and our team raided the brothel. We found Basanti, the 16 year old victim, on the first floor of the brothel. The police arrested the female brothel keeper, a woman in her late 60s. The police bagged evidence including liquor bottles and condoms. After they filed their initial reports, they locked the brothel. The victim, the accused and our team proceeded to the police station where the police filed the First Information Report.
Basanti and the suspects were taken for a medical check up. After their medical tests were completed, Basanti was placed in a shelter home in Kolkata and the accused was kept in police custody.
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