Prostitution racket busted in Thane: Actor held for sex trade; 2 TV serial actresses rescued

NEW DELHI: A 41-year-old actor has been arrested in Maharashtra’s Thane district for allegedly running a prostitution racket and forcing aspiring women actors into the trade, a police official said on Friday.Acting on a tip-off, police sent two decoy customers to contact the accused, identified as Anushka Moni Mohan Das. She allegedly directed them to meet her at a mall on the Mumbai–Ahmedabad highway in Kashimira on Wednesday, the official said."The team raided the premises and caught the accused red-handed accepting money from the decoy customers. We also rescued two women who are active in TV serials and Bangla cinema," said assistant commissioner of police Madan Ballal of the Mira-Bhayandar, Vasai-Virar Police.A case has been filed against Das under Section 143(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, related to human trafficking, and under provisions of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act (PITA). The rescued women have been shifted to a shelter home, the official said."A probe is underway to uncover the full extent of this crime and to identify if there are any other accomplices," ACP Ballal added. (With inputs from agency)