As the twin-city once again stares at an alarming rise in the number of COVID-19 cases, sex trade racketeers have brazenly continued to indulge in their nefarious activities from dingy lodges which were allowed to operate following relaxations in the coronavirus-induced lockdown.
A team from the Anti-Human Trafficking Unit (AHTU) of the Mira Bhayandar-Vasai Virar (MBVV) police commissionerate led by Senior Police Inspector Sampatrao Patil busted a prostitution racket which was operating from a hotel under the guise of providing lodging and boarding facilities to patrons in Kashimira.
Acting on a tip-off, the police team in association with members of Rescue Foundation, sent a decoy and established contact with some pimps who were hand-in-glove with the staffers at Hotel Samudra, a lodging and boarding facility located near the highway in Kashimira.
Following confirmation, the team swooped down on the establishment late on Monday night. While the manager and waiter of the establishment were arrested and booked under section 370 of the IPC and relevant sections of the Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act (PITA), three women were rescued from the clutches of the flesh trade racketeer. Two more people are wanted in the case.
However, action eludes the owner and operator of the establishment who are the actual beneficiaries and perpetrators of the immoral activities.
“As of now those who were present on the spot have been arrested. After investigations the owner and operator of the establishment will be identified and booked in the case,” said an investigating officer.
Unfazed by the recent crackdown initiated by the MBVV cops, some notorious lodge owners, especially on the highway belt in Kashimira have continued with their immoral activities.
