Baripada: The Odisha police busted a human trafficking gang and rescued two women who were allegedly sold by their aunt, an officer said Friday.
The two tribal women, sisters by relation, were rescued from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Mayurbhanj district, S Susree, told reporters.
The police arrested one person – the alleged buyer – from Madhya Pradesh, while three others, including the aunt of the women, are absconding.
The sisters, one 22-year-old and the other 20-year-old, are residents of a village under the Bisoi police limits in Mayurbhanj district and were allegedly lured by their aunt with jobs.
“They were contacted by their aunt, who promised them jobs in the Rourkela steel plant,” the police officer said.
The aunt then contacted one middleman, who took the girls to Rourkela December 6, 2023.
After reaching Rourkela, the middleman took one of the sisters to Rajasthan and the other to Madhya Pradesh.
They were sold for a total of Rs2 lakh, the officer said, adding that the man who bought the elder sister in Madhya Pradesh married her.
The younger of the two sisters somehow managed to get in touch with their father after which he registered a FIR with the Bisoi police station.
A police team led by Sub Inspector Ghanashyam Mallick of Bisoi police station went to Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh to rescue both the sisters, the Mayurbhanj district SP said.
Efforts are on to catch the other accused persons, the SP added.
PTI