Lokhandwala sex racket: HC pulls up police, govt

The Bombay High Court on Thursday pulled up the Maharashtra government for its failure to challenge the orders of a sessions court that granted bail to accused in an alleged sex racket being run in Mumbai’s Lokhandwala area.

A division bench presided over by Justice Ranjit More and Justice Anuja Prabhudesai was hearing a petition filed by a victim alleging police inaction on her complaint and seeking that the case be transferred to the CBI. The victim had lodged a case at the Oshiwara police station, saying she was abducted from Agra when she was seven years old and brought to the city, where she was raised by a family in Lokhandwala.

According to the petitioner girl, there were six to seven other girls who were brought from different places and when they turned 13 or 14 years of age, they were forced into prostitution and some were even sent to Dubai as part of the sex racket.

During the hearing, the bench said, “We fail to understand as to why the government did not challenge the sessions court’s orders before the HC. We want to know the procedure followed by the government to challenge the orders of lower courts in HC.”

Citing the procedure followed in Goa, Justice Prabhudesai said that in Goa there is a Director of Prosecution, who along with the prosecutor and the investigating officer of the case, decides whether to approach a higher court against the orders of the lower court.

State’s advocate general Rohit Deo assured the court that he would look into the matter and inform the court about the procedure followed in Maharashtra for filing appeals.

The matter would be heard on May 3.

The Bench directed the police not to file chargesheet against the two accused, who are bailed out by the sessions court in this case