In a major breakthrough, Itanagar Police have busted an interstate child trafficking racket operating between Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, rescuing three minor girls and arresting six accused persons.
The investigation began in the early hours of February 7, 2026, when a seven-year-old girl was found wandering alone in a critically injured condition at F Sector, Itanagar. A local resident alerted authorities, and the child was taken to the Women Police Station (WPS), Itanagar, before being rushed to RK Mission Hospital for medical examination.
During counselling at ‘Ane’s Home’ — a one-stop support centre for women and child victims located within the WPS premises — the child disclosed repeated physical assault and abuse, prompting a wider probe.
The Child Welfare Committee (CWC) of the capital region was informed, and the child was provided psychological care and protection. Police revealed that she had been brought from Assam and forced to work as a domestic help in Itanagar, where she was allegedly subjected to sustained cruelty. She escaped on the night of February 6.
Following a written complaint from the CWC chairperson, Itanagar WPS Case No. 09/2026 was registered under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with relevant sections of the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986, and the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.
Subsequent raids led to the rescue of three minor girls from different locations and the arrest of six individuals accused of trafficking, purchasing and exploiting children. Notices under Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) were served to three additional persons linked to the case.
Investigators uncovered what they described as an organised and systematic pattern of interstate trafficking. Minor children were allegedly sold through informal cash transactions without any legal adoption procedures. Many were deprived of education, identity documents and basic rights, and forced into domestic labour under exploitative conditions.
In one shocking instance, a five-year-old child was reportedly sold for ₹12,000. Police said some biological parents were among those arrested for allegedly selling their own children.
The probe also revealed that multiple children from the same family were trafficked into different households over time. Two minor children linked to the trafficking chain remain missing, including a 14-year-old boy who reportedly went missing in 2021 and is still untraceable.
Police teams are continuing efforts to trace the missing children, identify additional victims, track financial transactions and determine the full extent of the network.
Officials termed the case a grave violation of child rights and warned that domestic child labour and informal “adoption” arrangements often mask trafficking and abuse.
Among those arrested are women accused of selling and purchasing minor children, while one accused was later granted bail. Several individuals have been served notices for their alleged involvement or knowledge of the trafficking and disappearance of minors.
The rescued children have been produced before the Child Welfare Committee and placed in recognized shelter homes for safe custody and rehabilitation.
