Railwayman sentenced seven years in jail for attempting to sell minor

Kolkata: A former railway employee was convicted and sentenced to seven years rigorous imprisonment and fine by a city court on Wednesday for attempting to sell a minor girl to a red light area in north Kolkata. Haradhan Dutta was sentenced by additional district and sessions judge

Shankar Mani Tripathi

of the 2nd fast track court,

Bichar Bhawan

, after a four-year-old legal battle by NGOs. The victim will receive Rs 10,000 s compensastion, the court ruled.

On August 6, 2012, the

Durbar Mahila Samanyay Committee

informed police of a 13-year-old girl brought to Sonagachi by an elderly man. A raid was conducted and Dutta was arrested. The

International Justice Mission

(IJM) came forward to provide legal assistance and during trial, it came to be known that the girl lived with her grandmother near Howrah. Dutta spotted her at

Howrah station

where she had gone to board a train to Lucknow where her parents lived.

Dutta, in uniform, flashed his identity card and told the girl that he was a policeman before taking her to the Sonagachi on the pretext of buying her food. “The girl is now a Class-IX. We are very happy to find the police and the courts so proactive,” said Biju Mathew, director, IJM.