Girl, 12, raped by 200 men after failing exam and running away from home
A young girl has been rescued from a prostitution ring in India after being raped by more than 200 men within three months.
The child, originally from Bangladesh, ran away to India out of fear of being beaten by her parents for failing a school subject.
A woman she knew assisted in smuggling her across the border but according to Indian police, upon arrival, she was taken to Nadiad in Gujarat and forced into prostitution, reports the Mirror.
During her ordeal, she faced continuous sexual abuse until being freed on July 26, following a collaborative effort between a local advocacy group and the anti-human trafficking unit of the local police.
With 10 individuals arrested so far, activists say her extraction from these horrors marks only the beginning of a long road to recovery.
"This girl has not even reached her teenage years, but her childhood has been stolen by such monsters in the flesh trade," said Abraham Mathai, founder-chairman of the Harmony Foundation, one of the NGOs involved.
"Behind every such rescue is a child who wasn't heard; a child failed first by those meant to protect her, and then by a society that only reacts when it's too late."
Mathai also highlighted children can be put at risk due to severe parenting methods.
Local police commissioner Niket Kaushik said law enforcement is actively investigating to dismantle the network and safeguard other at-risk children.
Despite these efforts, activists argue the police must intensify their actions to ensure the safety of children.
Activist Madhu Shankar added: "I have often seen minor girls begging in Vashi and Belapur areas, who are often stolen as babies from villages, brought to cities and then exploited.
"They are handled by one or two elderly women who also push them into prostitution. They are even administered hormonal injections so that they attain puberty earlier."
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Research by Child Rights and You revealed a dramatic increase in sexual violence across India, with incidents soaring by 96 per cent between 2016 and 2022.
Nearly 40,000 cases of child rape and sexual assault were recorded in 2022 alone.
In April, a teenage girl in India suffered a horrific gang rape by 23 men who allegedly passed her between them, transporting her to different attackers at each location.
The 19-year-old victim alleges she was kidnapped by a man whilst returning home from her friend's house on March 29 in Varanasi, northern India. She stated she was transported to a café in a neighbouring town, three miles away, where she encountered her next attacker.
Local media reported the teenager was subsequently taken by another man and his accomplice to a highway, where they sexually assaulted her. They then abandoned her in another town called Nadesar.
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