Six minors were rescued and 73 individuals were detained from a "brothel" reportedly owned by BJP's Meghalaya vice- president Bernard N Marak in Tura, a top police official claimed on Saturday, news agency PTI reported.
Rimpu Bagan, a farmhouse owned by militant-turned-politician Marak, was searched on the basis of a tip off, according to Superintendent of Police Vivekanand Singh of West Garo Hills district.
“We have rescued six minors — four boys and two girls — who were found locked inside dingy cabin-like unhygienic rooms at Rimpu Bagan, run by Bernard N Marak and his accomplices as a brothel, for the purpose of prostitution,” Singh was quoted by PTI in its report.
According to him, all of the children were turned over to the District Child Protection Officer (DCPO) for safe custody and subsequent legal action.
He added that during the operation, 27 automobiles, eight two-wheelers, 400 bottles of booze, over 500 unused condoms, and crossbows and arrows were recovered, PTI reported.
According to the officer, 73 persons were detained for engaging in "nefarious operations," as evidenced by the material recovered, and the farmhouse contains 30 modest rooms.
It is suspected of being the site of a sexual attack on a girl, and a complaint was filed in that respect in February, he added.
“It was ascertained that the minor was sexually assaulted multiple times over one week, and a case was registered under IPC sections 366A (procuration of minor girl), 376 (punishment for rape) and sections of the POCSO Act,” Singh said.
The victim informed the court that the accused took her and her friend to Rimpu Bagan. He said that the accused leased a room there and sexually attacked her many times.
Multiple verbal complaints were also received from Tura town inhabitants claiming immoral acts at Rimpu Bagan, prompting the officer to arrange the operation.
During the operation, officers discovered several young men and women who were naked and drinking. He said that all 68 of them had been arrested.
According to him, the property's manager, caretaker, and three employees were also detained.
A case was filed in accordance with the relevant sections of the IPC and the Immoral Trafficking (Prevention) Act of 1956.
Police stated that they had urged Marak to comply with the inquiry and surrender promptly at the Shillong Sadar police station, but he was dodging arrest.
Marak, an elected member of the Garo Tribal Autonomous District Council, assailed Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma in a statement, dismissing any allegations of running a "brothel."
“The CM is getting desperate as he knows he is losing his South Tura seat to the BJP. The raid at my farmhouse is a desperate attempt by him to malign my image and a political vendetta,” he claimed.
The BJP is a constituent of the ruling Meghalaya Democratic Alliance, which is led by Sangma's NPP.
Since the early 2000s, the SP claimed that more than 25 criminal proceedings against Marak were filled, the then-self-styled leader of the now-defunct militant organisation Achik National Voluntary Council.
(With Agencies Inputs)