HT Correspondent
JORHAT, May 19: A total of 24 victims of human trafficking under the jurisdiction of Mariani Police Station in the Titabar sub-division of Jorhat district were rescued in two batches from Arunachal Pradesh and reunited with their families by the Jorhat district police in the past few days, an official said.
The victims, all from tea garden areas, were reportedly lured in April with promises of work in Tezpur, but were instead taken to Arunachal Pradesh after being drugged.
Related Posts:
They were rescued from Rupa in the West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh on May 15 and 17, respectively, and brought to the Deberapar Police Outpost.
In an official statement, Jorhat Superintendent of Police Shwetank Mishra said the incident came to light after Gauri Sahu, wife of one of the victims, Kumar Sahu of Dahingeapar Tea Estate, lodged a complaint at Deberapar Outpost on April 27. She reported that on April 7, a group of workers from the estate had been taken away under the pretext of being offered work on vegetable farms by one Pitka Majhi.
She also stated that the families had lost contact with the workers since their departure.
Following the complaint, a police team led by Sub-Inspector Abdul Rahman launched an investigation. Upon tracing the victims to Rupa, the police facilitated a video call between the missing workers and their families through their employers.
“All of them said they thought they were being taken to Tezpur, but instead they were transported to Arunachal. As a result, the employers in Arunachal were instructed to release the workers belonging to Dahingeapar Tea Estate. On May 14, eight of the victims were rescued and brought to Deberapar on May 15. They told police they had been exploited — their phones were confiscated, they were occasionally assaulted, and forced to work long hours from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m,” the SP said.
The victims also alleged that they were promised a monthly wage of ₹7,000 but were never paid. They further claimed they had been administered intoxicants that rendered them unconscious during the journey to Arunachal Pradesh.
Subsequently, police arrested two individuals, Pitka Majhi and Lakshman Dutta, on May 15. Sixteen more victims were rescued on May 16 and brought to Jorhat on May 17.
The two arrested — Lakshman Dutta (59) of Sonowal Seuji Gaon under Mariani Police Station, and Pitka Majhi (31) of Dahingeapar Tea Estate, Borline — are in police custody in connection with the case.
