Kidnapped, drugged and trafficked on her way to school

DEEPIKA* was on her way to school. It was a normal morning and she walked the route she knew well. In a few minutes, she would reach her school. But a few steps away, a group of men stopped her and put something over her mouth that made her lose consciousness. When she opened her eyes, she was on a train, squeezed between three adult men. Her eyes would barely open and she wanted to scream for help but the drugs that were forced into her system prevented her from making a sound. Deepika was taken from her home in West Bengal all the way to Gujarat where she was sold to a brothel. For the next 6 months, this little girl was forced to endure the worst torture known to a child – sexual abuse. 

 

Deepika was a minor. Her world consisted of school, home and friends. How to escape a brothel was not something she didn’t knew how to do. But she found a friend in a local tailor who spoke the Bengali language and poured her heart out to him. Fortunately for Deepika, the tailor was a good man who helped her escape and put her on a train back to West Bengal. When she arrived in Howrah, the police and the team from the anti trafficking NGO Vihaan were waiting to take her home. Her family was overwhelmed to see her and their 6 months of misery was finally over. But the knowledge of what their underage daughter had to endure in a brothel was far too much for them to bear. Her family wanted justice. 

 

The anti trafficking NGO Vihaan helped Deepika and her family register an official complaint and held their hand through the legal process, which is often daunting for victims. Alongside this, Vihaan paid careful attention to Deepika and made sure she received the medical, psychological and educational care she needed to recover from her horrific trauma and start to rebuild her life. Vihaan provided Deepika with education and vocational skills training that would help her find safe and decent employment when she became an adult. Fast forward to the future and Deepika is a well-adjusted young woman who is married with children of her own whom she cherishes with her whole heart. 

 

Criminals target the poor and powerless

Kidnapping and sexual exploitation of children can – and does – happen to anyone, regardless of economic class. But poverty makes people more vulnerable to these crimes. Deepika’s father was a daily wage laborer earning a meager income. For the traffickers, this meant that he was not a formidable opponent and could not fight back when his daughter was kidnapped. The anti trafficking NGO Vihaan exists to help people such as Deepika and her family, people who cannot help themselves. Disadvantaged people are often considered “unimportant” because the assumption is that no one will fight for them. But Vihaan is a powerful force that is taking on traffickers who sexually exploit children while helping children heal.

 

How Vihaan became an anti trafficking NGO 

Vihaan has rescued more than 5,000 victims, supported 3,500+ survivors through their aftercare program and trained 1,100+ survivors with survival skills. But as we learned with Deepika’s case, Vihaan does more than help victims get back on their feet. As an anti trafficking NGO, Vihaan goes after the traffickers with the weight of the law behind them. Vihaan has arrested 1,300+ criminals with the assistance of law enforcement and has secured 180 convictions. 

 

The Maharashtra-based anti trafficking NGO has bases in New Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Mumbai and Patna. Vihaan has more than 63,700 team members working on the frontlines to fight the crime of the trafficking of children. Vihann consists of social workers, counsellors, lawyers and researchers who work closely with the local authorities, the police and other organizations in the fight against trafficking to tackle this crime and keep children across India safe. 

 

Help keep children safe from sexual exploitation

The words child and sexual exploitation should never belong in the same sentence. But anti trafficking NGOs such as Vihaan are joining hands with the government and police to ensure children and their families are safe from sexual exploitation while victims have access to remedial measures in the fight for justice. In this fight, your support is needed to help Vihaan rescue more victims and secure justice for their families. To support the anti trafficking NGO and keep children safe:

 

Support Vihaan

 

*the name of the child has been changed to protect her identity

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