Mumbai Police Bust Child Trafficking Racket, 300 Children Sold Off To American Buyers For Rs 45 Lakh Each

Mumbai Police have arrested Rajubhai Gamlewala, the kingpin of an international child trafficking racket which was involved in selling babies to buyers from the United States (US), Times of India has reported. Several members of the gang led by Gamlewala were arrested earlier in March. The trafficking racket has been operating since 2007 and is accused of having sold at least 300 kids to US buyers for a price of Rs 45 lakh per kid. Fate of the trafficked kids is still unknown.

The children aged between 11-16 years belonged to poor families from Gujarat who were given up by the families because of their inability to take care of the kids. Gamlewala would tell his gang to find poor families who could sell their kids and the gang members would then try to rent passports which resemble the picture of the trafficked kid.

The gang would then pay a carrier to carry the kid to United States. The racket was busted when the actress, Preeti Sood received a call about two minors who were being prepped up in a salon at Versova. The actress said that she initially suspected that the gang was involved in prostitution, but later realised it was a trafficking racket.

The kingpin, Rajubhai was caught with the help of a WhatsApp number used for communicating with his gang.

The Lok Sabha has passed the ‘Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2018’ to combat the menace of trafficking. It is pending before Rajya Sabha.