The accused had forced five women, including two minors, into sex trade. (Representational Image) The accused had forced five women, including two minors, into sex trade. (Representational Image) The Thane Sessions Court sentenced three persons to 10 years in jail for running a brothel and trafficking women from Bangladesh, on Monday. The accused, Abdul alias Afzal Shaikh (42), his wife Shivali alias Sangeeta Afzal Shaikh (30), and Sangeeta’s sister Nargis Abdul Hassan (24), were held guilty under sections of the Immoral Trafficking (Prevention) Act and sections of Indian Penal Code for sex trafficking. Judge S C Khalipe observed that the accused had forced five women, including two minors, into sex trade. The five women were rescued from Upvan Hotel, in Thane, on August 23, 2012. Following a medical examination in Thane civil hospital, the two minors’ age was verified at 16. All of them were brought from Bangladesh with promise of work and forced into prostitution in a brothel run by the family. The other rescued women were 25 and 22 years old at the time of rescue. According to victims’ advocate Megan Fernandez, assisting the public prosecutor, the three operated out of a brothel on Pokharan Road. On August 23, 2012, they changed the venue to Upvan hotel. The hotel was raided by anti-human trafficking cell following which the case was transferred to Vartak Nagar police station. For all the latest Mumbai News, download Indian Express App

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