Assam’s District Labour Task Force on Sunday rescued a teen girl from a locked storage box of a bed in Guwahati. The girl used to work as a domestic help and was subjected to repeated physical abuse, reported NDTV.
The video of the rescue operation, which made multiple rounds across social media platforms, triggered massive outrage.
The 13-year-old girl was employed as a domestic help in the house for the past six years, the report said.
What had happened?
Local residents raised complaints after the girl child was employed as a domestic help and was also subjected to continuous physical abuse, NDTV reported citing authorities.
Acting on the tip-off, a team from Assam’s District Labour Task Force visited the location on the evening of Sunday. The accused, Arina Laskar Khatun initially denied the presence of the girl and claimed that her father has taken her away a few days earlier.
Predicting a possibility of a raid, the accused woman allegedly hid the girl inside the bed’s divan storage box, who was trapped for nearly 25 minutes till the officials arrived at the spot.
When the team, noting suspicious behavior, sought permission to inspect the premises, the family resisted saying that a child was asleep at the moment. After repeated requests, the room was checked, NDTV reported citing officials.
The rescue
During the search operation, the forces rescued the minor girl hidden inside the bed box, in a severely weakened condition. They immediately took her out.
According to the report, after regaining consciousness, she broke down in tears.
Later, she admitted that she had been employed as a house-help for nearly six years and that she had been subjected to physical abuse.
Authorities immediately removed her from the premises.
A detailed investigation is underway with further legal action expected, the report read.