Thane court acquits five men in human trafficking case, cites gaps in prosecution evidence

The Thane court acquitted five men charged with human trafficking and running a flesh trade, citing grave and fatal lacunae in the prosecution's case. The judgment highlighted the non-examination of a police officer who laid the trap as a critical witness and noted that the non-examination of the victims undermines the prosecution. It criticized the prosecution’s reliance on a hostile 'bogus customer' witness and pointed out that hotel owners were not charge-sheeted, leaving only lower-level employees to face trial. The court stated that the inadequacy of the evidence renders conviction improper and ordered the discharge of bail bonds for Vijay Balkrushna Kadam, Vijay Dwarka Yadav, Vijay Khushiyal Saw, Shambhu Siddheshwar Saw and Satish Mahabala Shetty under Section 370 IPC and the Immoral Traffic Act.

A police raid was conducted at a hotel in the Mira Road area of Thane district, Maharashtra, during which two women were rescued from commercial sexual exploitation; one woman was from Bangladesh and the other from West Bengal.