Suman's story. A first-person narrative.
My family was poor and my father was the only member earning a wage. He stayed in the city for the most part because of his work. I lived with my mother and three brothers in the village. I took the Madhyamik exam at the end of the tenth standard, which is a centralized examination conducted by the education board in West Bengal, and was waiting for my result. I wanted to continue my education but was worried that I would not have enough money to pay for admission.
While I was still waiting for my results, my neighbors, Subhodra Mondol and Kundu Pada Mondol, who knew about my financial dilemma, offered me a job. They told me I could work for three months as a housemaid in the city to earn enough money for my admission. They promised me that they would place me with a good family. I agreed and went with Subhodra to Kolkata.
Suman's family tells the rest of her story.
After a few days, Subhodra came back to our village. When we asked about Sumi, we were told that she was working with a good family at Jadavpur, Kolkata. One day, we got a call from Pune from an unknown person called Jafor Ali Megh. He told us that Sumi had been sold into the red light area and was begging to be rescued. He told us that he was her customer and she had enlisted him to help her by passing on information about her whereabouts. We went to the Gram Panchayat (village council) and referred the case to an NGO. The NGO helped us to file an FIR (first information report) and complete the necessary procedures to go to Pune. They communicated with the customer and rescued Sumi from the brothel with the help of the Pune police.