Thursday, July 14, 2011

Jul 14, 2011: Sex racket busted, Sonu Panjaban's kin held

Dwaipayan Ghosh, TNN | Jul 14, 2011, 05.47am IST
NEW DELHI: They travelled in an Audi car, charged Rs 4 lakh a month for their "services" and liked to "operate" from farmhouses and flats owned by their pimp at the Chattarpur Farms, Malviya Nagar and Kalkaji. They even had a customer profile wing that engaged Mumbai-based models for high-paying customers, while poor girls from the trans-Yamuna region were lured into a life of prostitution after being promised a huge sum.

With the arrest of five women, including a proclaimed offender, and two cousins of notorious woman pimp Sonu Punjaban, the police on Wednesday claimed to have nabbed a gang involved in prostitution across north and west India. The main accused has been identified as 27-year-oldNajma Khan. The cops have recovered a high-end Audi car – worth Rs 40 lakh - from her. "Khan claimed the car was a present from her boyfriend but we found that the car is registered in her name and she is financing it herself,'' said Chhaya Sharma, DCP (south).

According to the police, Khan speaks fluent English and is known as Abiba among her clients. Born in Azamgarh, Khan's family shifted to Pune and then to Saudia Arabia before returning to Delhi six years ago. She was declared a proclaimed offender in 2006 but kept travelling around the country and even performed at a New Year bash in Dubai last year. Before setting up base in Delhi's Chattarpur area, Khan lived in Pune and Mumbai for one year.

The two alleged pimps Sanjay Bhatia (21) and Vijay Bhatia (25) were apprehended on Tuesday after the police received a tip-off. Talking to the media, Abiba claimed that she was "innocent and was being unnecessarily framed by Sonu and the police.'' The four other arrested girls include a struggling model from Mumbai, a first-year college dropout and an MBA student. One of them said she belongs to Mumbai and came to Delhi six years ago after marrying a well-known city builder.

"Khan used the Chattarpur farmhouse as a brothel and provided auxiliary services, which included ferrying clients around in an Audi A-4 series luxury car. She had a broad spectrum of girls in her network and assigned them ratings according to which they were paid anything between Rs 5,000 and 50,000," she said. A night with one of Khan's high-end "models"would cost clients Rs 15,000 while they were charged Rs 40,000 for a weekend.

"The alleged pimps are the cousins of pimp Sonu Punjaban who has been charged under MCOCA," said Sharma. "We arrested the men from near Qutub Minar where they were looking for potential customers. A trap was set and a decoy customer was sent. The pimp approached the decoy customer and offered him the services of a call girl. After making enquiries about the call girls, the decoy customer asked the pimp to show him the girls. The pimp told the decoy would bring the girls in his car. He drove away and returned with two girls in a white Audi," Sharma added.

The pimp said the fashionably-dressed woman driving the Audi would cost Rs 40,000, while the woman sitting in the passenger seat was available for Rs 10,000. When the decoy expressed his inability to pay such prices, the pimp offered to arrange for a cheaper alternative. The pimp took the decoy customer to a flat at Chhatarpur Enclave, where he was asked to choose from among some women. A team who had followed them raided the flat and took five call girls and two pimps into custody.

"We learnt that apart from providing the services of call girls, the pimps would lure girls from poor families in the trans-Yamuna area by dangling the bait of a luxurious lifestyle and good money. The women began working as prostitutes after a short training during which they were taught how to wear expensive clothes and makeup and warned not to indulge in conversation with their customers," Sharma said.

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