NIA lodges first human trafficking case under recently-amended NIA Act

The National Investigation Agency has registered its first human trafficking case under the recently-approved NIA Act against three people for their alleged involvement in the trafficking and sexually exploitation of Bangladeshi women, an official said on Wednesday.

Mohammad Yousuf Khan, his wife Bithi Begum and Sojib, native of West Bengal living in Hyderabad, were arrested in April by Hyderabad police for trafficking and sexually exploiting Bangladeshi women, he said.

Yousuf and Bithi were running a prostitution racket at a premises in Uppuguda, Hyderabad, he said.

Acting on a tip-off, the police raided the premises and on April 21 and arrested three persons and rescued five Bangladeshi women, the official said.

On August 9, the case was transferred to the Central Crime Station, Hyderabad, he said.

Due to the gravity of the offence and its inter-state and cross-border connections, the case was taken over by the NIA for a detailed investigation, the official added.

On July 17, Parliament approved the National Investigation Agency (Amendment) Bill to enable the NIA, among other things, to additionally investigate offenses related to human trafficking, counterfeit currency, manufacture or sale of prohibited arms, cyber-terrorism, and offenses under the Explosive Substances Act, 1908.