Bangladeshi Survivor Finally Found and Rescued After 30 Months

Shabana after her rescue

In October 2022, we learned about 16-year-old Bangladeshi victim Shabana. She was trafficked to the red-light area in Barshi, Maharashtra, and was being sexually exploited. After coordinating with the police, we planned a rescue. Information was leaked to the brothel, and the rescue operation failed. Shabana disappeared. We were unable to track her for several months. In April 2023, we received intel that Shabana was back in Barshi. Once again, we coordinated with the police and planned a rescue operation. While we were still 21 miles away from Barshi, we received intel that the brothel had been put on alert and shut down. As with the previous time, information had been leaked to the brothel, and once again, Shabana disappeared.

In November 2023, we rescued another survivor, 17-year-old Rati from Barshi. While we were interviewing Rati, we discovered that she was Shabana's sister. We met Rati regularly to check up on her. When we inquired about Shabana, Rati would only tell us that Shabana was somewhere in Yavatmal (about 320 miles from Barshi). Rati refused to share anything else about her sister. We continued to pursue other leads in an effort to find Shabana. 

17 months later, in May 2025, we received a new lead for Shabana. She was in the red-light area in Miraj (135 miles from Barshi). While we were still gathering intel, Shabana disappeared. A few days later, she returned to Miraj. Shabana had married a man from Solapur (120 miles from Miraj). Not wanting her to disappear again, we sought the help of other NGOs (non-government organizations) to rescue Shabana. A few were unavailable, and the others did not wish to partner with us for this rescue. After 30 months of tracking Shabana, we were determined to find her. Our team left for Miraj.

On June 13, we visited the office of the Superintendent of Police (SP) in Sangli. We wanted him to initiate a raid right away. We were asked to wait as he was busy in meetings. We waited the entire day and did not get to meet with him.

The next day, we returned to his office and were able to meet him. He was not very welcoming of our team, and we knew this was due to an ongoing investigation of a rescue operation in Sangli in August 2022. We left his office, not expecting any help from him. While we were preparing to seek assistance from the Inspector General of Police in Kolhapur City, a senior officer from the SP’s office called us. She said she would prepare a team to initiate a raid and help us rescue Shabana. 

The stairs leading down to the room where Shabana was being sexually exploited

On June 14, at about 5 p.m., the police and our team raided the brothel and rescued Shabana. The brothel keeper, a female in her late 30s, was absconding, and the owner of the brothel, a female in her 40s, was detained by the police (but released later while the police continued their investigation on her). The police collected incriminating evidence from the brothel, after which we proceeded to the police station.

At the police station, the police were reluctant to file a First Information Report; they claimed that Shabana was an Indian citizen and a major. We disagreed. Shabana was a major, but she was a Bangladeshi national (we already had her sister Rati’s report stating that they were Bangladeshis). We insisted that they place Shabana in a shelter home until she could be safely repatriated back to her family in Bangladesh. Shabana was sent to a shelter home in Sangli.

On June 16, Shabana was produced before the Sessions Court in Miraj. The magistrate denied us permission to meet Shabana or to conduct her home investigation. The magistrate ordered the Probation Officer (PO) to conduct Shabana’s home investigation by June 19. Depending on the results, Shabana may be released from the shelter home. 

We are currently waiting for the POs report. We have since received information that Shabana’s family in Bangladesh is responsible for trafficking her to India and forcing her into prostitution. We hope that after examining the PO's report, the magistrate will give us permission to meet and counsel Shabana. 

Shabana was trafficked to India when she was 16 years old. She bounced from brothel to brothel and has spent the last few years being forced to see multiple customers a day. Shabana seems eager to return to her home and previous life. As we walk with Shabana through her transition home, we will seek to help her recognize and overcome the terrible crimes committed against her, and encourage her to testify so that the people responsible are punished. Shabana deserves justice and a chance to start over.

At the police station after Shabana's rescue