Bhubaneswar: Five minor tribal girls from Odisha have been rescued from Hyderabad and the prime accused in the trafficking case arrested, police said Wednesday.
The girls belonged to economically disadvantaged tribal communities, including Kandha and Saura, and had dropped out of school, they said.
The case came to light after a local sarpanch lodged a complaint at Adava police station in Gajapati district August 17, alleging that several girls from the area had been trafficked. Acting on the complaint, police launched an investigation led by R Udayagiri SDPO Rakesh Kumar Sahoo.
During the investigation, credible information was received about the movement of the victims to Hyderabad, police said, adding that searches were conducted at multiple locations in the city and all five girls rescued.
The investigation also revealed that the girls’ Aadhaar details were allegedly manipulated to show them as adults, facilitating their trafficking, police said.
The prime accused, Rajkumar Bastray, has been arrested, they said.
“Further investigation is underway to identify other persons involved in the trafficking network, trace and rescue other possible victims, and apprehend all remaining accused persons,” Sahoo told reporters.
“The health, safety and education of these minor girls are now our top priority. We are committed to ensuring their proper rehabilitation and restoration of their rights,” he said.