Pune, 14 July 2025: A harrowing case has emerged in Pune where a Bangladeshi minor girl was allegedly confined in a brothel and brutally beaten for refusing to be forced into prostitution. The girl's ordeal came to light when social workers, alerted to her plight, rescued her with the help of Sahakar Nagar police. Two traffickers have been arrested in connection with the case, and three individuals have been formally charged.
According to the police, the minor girl was known to one of the accused, Tamanna alias Parul Mukhtar Shaikh. Tamanna had lured the girl with the false promise of a good job in a beauty parlour in Pune. Believing the offer, the girl travelled to Bengaluru, where she was placed with another accused, Rakib Khan.
However, instead of a job, attempts were made to push her into prostitution. When the girl resisted, Tamanna Shaikh and Abhishek Prakash Santhebaanur (a resident of Hubli, Karnataka) brought her to Pune.
Once in Pune, the girl was confined to a room in Sahakarnagar and repeatedly coerced into sex work. Her continuous refusal was met with violence, as she was severely beaten with a belt. Trapped and desperate, the girl managed to contact the Bangladesh police using her mobile phone from within the confines of the room.
The Bangladesh police contacted a social organization in Pune, which then informed the Sahakar Nagar police. Under the guidance of Additional Commissioner of Police Rajesh Bansode and Deputy Commissioner of Police Milind Mohite, a team led by Senior Inspector Rahul Aware and Police Inspector (Crime) Surekha Chavan launched a search operation on Friday night.
In the early hours of Saturday, Abhishek Santhebaanur and Tamanna Shaikh were apprehended, and the victimized girl was successfully rescued.
The arrested accused are currently in judicial custody. The third accused, Rakib Khan, remains at large, and police are actively searching for him. Investigations into this egregious case of human trafficking are ongoing.
