In March 2020, when the Covid-19 lockdown was imposed, 21-year-old Haseena Khatun (name changed), from Majgama village of Bihar’s eastern Kishanganj district married Afaque Alam.
A week later, in spite of the lockdown, they moved over 1,600 km northwest to Chandigarh in a private vehicle. “I started doing flesh trade against my consent to protect my life,” said Khatun, in a statement registered at Kishanganj district’s Kochadhaman police station on August 25, 2022. After the wedding, her husband behaved well for a month and then forced her into flesh trade. When she refused, Alam beat her up, and once brandished a knife threatening to kill her if she resisted, she told IndiaSpend.
“Every day, he used to force me to do the flesh trade after intoxicating me [with alcohol]. When we [wife and husband] were having sex, my husband made a video of it. He has sent the video to my family members.”
After three months, she met a man from her village, Saddam (he uses one name), in Chandigarh’s Manimajra, who helped her escape after hearing her story, she said. She has now returned home.
Locals in Kishanganj say the problem of trafficking is endemic and women from poor families are the most frequent targets. A survey in…
