Police rescue 25 minor girls from Bihar fair

Patna: Twenty Five minor girls, who were allegedly forced to dance naked at a theatre in a rural fair near the Indo-Nepal border in Bihar's Araria district, were rescued and 44 people arrested under human trafficking charges during a raid, police said on Monday.

Araria Superintendent of Police Shivdeep Lande said that minor girls were forced to dance naked, not only for entertainment but to "attract good buyers" from outside the state.

"Police have been investigating it by interrogating rescued the minor girls and arrested people," Lande said.

All the rescued minor girls, who are from neighbouring areas and from Nepal have been handed over to the district children's welfare committee for rehabilitation.

Lande told IANS over telephone that all the girls are minors and the arrested people are from Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Nepal and other parts of Bihar. "It appears to be a part of a big human trafficking racket."

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Some locals alleged that the minor girls, mostly from very poor families were forced into flesh trade.

Lande admitted that human trafficking racket was rampant in various pockets along the Indo-Nepal border, particularly in Araria, about 350 km from Patna.

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