ITANAGAR: The Itanagar police have arrested Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Bulang Marik of the 1st Arunachal Armed Police Battalion (AAPBn) and two others in connection with an interstate sex trafficking and child exploitation racket.
The other two accused are Constable Toi Bagra (35), a resident of Ganga village, and Saddam Hussain (26), a mason from Dhubri, Assam, residing in Lekhi village.
The arrests are part of an ongoing investigation that has so far led to the apprehension of 21 individuals.
In addition to the arrests, police also rescued a fourth minor girl from a lodge on Zoo Road in Chimpu under Itanagar circle.
In a statement, the Itanagar police detailed how technical and human intelligence efforts identified a couple running the City Hotel on Zoo Road as key figures in the racket.
Dulal Basumatary (52) of Udalguri, Assam, who managed the hotel, and his wife, Dipali Basumatary (44), were arrested for their roles in coercing minor girls into prostitution.
The hotel’s manager, Deepak Parajuli (24) from Narayanpur, Assam, was also detained for facilitating these crimes.
The police described the distressing case of a 15-year-old girl, raised by the Basumatarys, who was forced into prostitution upon reaching adolescence.
She has since been moved to a shelter home and is receiving medical care.
Meanwhile, the Arunachal Pradesh State Commission for Women (APSCW) has voiced its outrage over the incident, calling on the state government to take stringent action against those responsible.
“We are deeply shocked and anguished by the heinous crime of sex trafficking of minor girls from the neighbouring state. It is also shameful to know that our own women and learned persons are involved in the case,” said APSCW Chairperson Kenjum Pakam in a statement.
The commission also commended the Itanagar police for their swift action in dismantling the trafficking ring and rescuing the victims.
Earlier, the Itanagar police busted an interstate prostitution racket involving minor girls, resulting in the arrest of 15 individuals.
Among those arrested are eight customers, including two state-employed engineers and a doctor, a senior police official reported.
Acting on specific intelligence, the police conducted a raid on a suspected brothel operating out of a residence in Itanagar.
During the operation, three minor girls were rescued from the premises.
