* Arrested kingpin allegedly acquired properties in multiple locations with the ill-gotten money
STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: The bust of the racket in Guwahati that was forcefully converting children and youths to trans-persons has led to some major revelations.
A total of six people from the racket were apprehended from the Gandhi Basti area under Chandmari Police Station on Monday night.
The arrested persons have been identified as — Pinky, Saheba, Pakhi, Nisha, and Arif. The name of another accused has not yet been disclosed by the police.
According to police sources, Pinky alias Maharam Ali, hailing from Hajo, is the kingpin of the racket. She was controlling the entire illegal trade from the city and was in connection with other members of the racket in Delhi.
The source said that the transgenders who engage in begging have to submit their daily collection to different leaders. In exchange for the collection, the leaders' bear the expenses of the transgenders.
Pinky was a leader of a group of transgenders who engage in begging in the streets of Guwahati. Recently, she purchased a plot of land worth Rs 90 lakh in Jalukbari and she also has flats in Maligaon and Delhi. The source stated that the police are suspecting that Pinky acquired the properties with the money earned from the racket.
Pinky, through her agents, targeted youths from poor families and lured them on the pretext of jobs and took them to Delhi. Later, the genitals of the youths are forcefully cut off and they are forced to engage in begging in the streets of Delhi. After a few days or months, the victims are sent to Assam and are spread into different areas, mostly for begging.
The racket came to light after a youth lodged a complaint at the All Women Police Station Panbazar that his genitals were forcefully cut off after he was taken to Delhi on the pretext of a job. He exposed the racket in his complaint following which an investigation was conducted. The complainant underlined that there are scores of youths from Assam who have become a victim of this racket operating from Assam.
It is to be noted that the transgender population is rising in the city and this illegal trade might be the reason for this boost.
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