On April 5th Samita*, a 16 – 18-year-old girl was rescued in an operation conducted by Freedom Firm’s intervention team and the local police in Ganga Jamuna, Nagpur.
Freedom Firm investigators first identified her in the month of February but were not able to engage her until April 4th. Samita was found with a missing left ear and half of her right ear as the result of a congenital condition. Samita is completely deaf. She also had untreated eye infections.
In the brothel, our team found a birth certificate in Samita’s possession which indicated that she was born in August 1998, making her 19 years old and a major.
Surprisingly, in the same brothel, our team found her mother’s and father’s ID card copies that stated her father was 33 and her mother was 31. Her mother would have had to be 11 or 12 when she gave birth
to Samita, which is improbable.
Despite the likelihood that Samita’s birth certificate was forged the police team refused to file a criminal complaint or send Samita for an age verification test. Samita was placed in a shelter home where she will stay until more information is gathered.
Our legal team is working to find out if the documents were forged, and if so, plan to file a criminal complaint against Samita’s brothel keeper.
*Name changed to protect identity.