Ahmedabad:
In a bizarre case, a couple in Naranpura has been booked for child labour and keeping their maid in illegal custody for over a month. The couple is alleged to have harassed the kid who, after due intervention of police and the child helpline, was rescued a few days back.
According to the complaint lodged with the Mahila Police station, 16-year-old Kamla (name changed) got the job of a full-time maid at businessman Harshad Punjabi's house in Ahmedabad through her brother-in-law, Kamlesh Prajapati.
However after a few months, Kamla's family decided to call her back home and asked Prajapati to convey the message to the Punjabi family. However, when Prajapati approached the Punjabis, he was reportedly told that many things were missing from their house and that they suspected Kamla for the same.
"They refused to send the girl back home until they recovered all the valuables. Whenever the girl would ask to be freed, they would threaten to file a police case. Moreover, they stopped paying her a salary and often even refused her food," states the complaint.
Finally after ten months, Prajapati told them to send Kamla back or lodge a police case for theft.
When the couple refused to oblige, Prajapati, with the help of police and local NGOs, rescued the girl and registered a case of illegal detention against the couple.
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