Human Trafficking in India - Prosecution

Prosecution

The Government of India penalises trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation through the Immoral Trafficking Prevention Act (ITPA). Prescribed penalties under the ITPA — ranging from seven years’ to life imprisonment — are sufficiently stringent and commensurate with those for other grave crimes. India also prohibits bonded and forced labour through the Bonded Labor Abolition Act, the Child Labor Act, and the Juvenile Justice Act.

Indian authorities also use Sections 366(A) and 372 of the Indian Penal Code, prohibiting kidnapping and selling minors into prostitution respectively, to arrest traffickers. Penalties under these provisions are a maximum of ten years’ imprisonment and a fine.

Bonded labour and the movement of sex trafficking victims, may occaisionally be facilitated by corrupt officials.They protect brothels that exploit victims, and protect traffickers and brothel keepers from arrest and other threats of enforcement.

Usually, there are no efforts made to tackle the problem of government officials’ complicity in trafficking workers for overseas employment. Bulk of bonded labour heads for Middle East to emerging economies and there are several media reports which report on the illegal and inhumane trafficking of Indian workers.

India’s Central Bureau of Investigation incorporated anti-trafficking training, by Dr. Gilly McKenzie of the Interpol Trafficking and Organised Crime Division, Into its standard curriculum. In November, the State of Maharashtra developed an action plan to combat trafficking;it did not, however, allocate appropriate funding to accomplish the objectives of this plan.

The government does not break down these statistics by sections of the law, meaning that law enforcement data regarding trafficking offenses may be conflated with data regarding arrests of women in prostitution pursuant to Section 8 of the ITPA.