Andhra police raid red light area in Pune, rescue 37 girls

Pune Police officials said that they extended full support to the AP police operation.

A team of Andhra Pradesh Police carried out a special operation in the Budhvar Peth area of the city and rescued 37 girls, including 10 minors. The operation was triggered by a Telugu news channel ‘sting operation’ which reportedly ‘exposed’ a racket in which girls from cities in Andhra Pradesh were kidnapped and forced into prostitution. The sting had claimed that a majority of these girls worked at Budhwar Peth as commercial sex workers.

On Wednesday, teams of Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department (CID) cops, Social Security Cell personnel and workers from NGOs working for the welfare of the sex workers carried out raids in the red light area of the city. DySP (CID) C Anusaya who supervised the operation said they had managed to rescuess 37 girls, of which 10 were minors.

The remaining 27 girls and eight pimps who were involved in the sex trade were produced before the court by the CID for transit remand. The minors were sent to a child rehab centre.

The AP government sprung into action after a private TV channel telecasted a ‘sting operation’ which claimed that 22 girls go missing from the state every day. Pune Police officials said that they extended full support to the AP police operation. Rajesh Bansode, DCP (Crime) said,”We had received a communication from the higher officials of the Andhra Pradesh police about their plan to conduct such an operation to rescue girls working as sex workers in Pune brothels. We extended them full support through Pune Police’s Social Security Cell and Faraskhana Police station police.”