A woman who was said to be among more than 150 Nepali women held captive in Benaras, India, before their hostage-takers decided to free her has filed a human trafficking complaint against two alleged captors at Shivapur Police Station in Varanasi, India. The 32-year-old woman from Madhuban Municipality in Bardiya district has filed human trafficking case against two persons identified as Sanjeev and Sundari, said Inspector Vijay Kumar of the station. While the case has been filed against two suspects, the other women and several other possible traffickers are still unaccounted for, the inspector said. On the night of July 16, an Indian police team and social workers had raided the building where all the women were allegedly being held hostage. Two women and three men were arrested from the building, but there were no sign of other women or the suspected traffickers. The raid was prompted after Bardiya district chief Ram Bahadur Kumbarung reported the incident to Indian police. Kumbarung had learned about the incident through the husband of the same woman who filed the trafficking case against Sanjeev and Sundari. She had reportedly phoned her husband asking for help after she was freed by her captors. The woman has claimed that she was released along with another woman for “security reasons”. If her statement is to be trusted, then there are still over 150 Nepali women who are being held hostage somewhere in India. She said these women hailed from different parts of Nepal, including Jhapa, Sunsari, Sindhuli, Rupandehi, Dang, Banke and Bardiya. The traffickers had allegedly lured them to go to India on the pretext of providing jobs in foreign countries. Inspector Vijaya Kumar said they suspected that the women were taken to New Delhi after their traffickers learned about the raid. The Delhi police have been informed about the incident, he added. नेपाली महिलालाई कुवेत लैजाने भन्दै भारतको बनारसमा बन्धक बनाउने मध्येका एक सन्दिप महतोलाई प्रहरीले फोटोको आधारमा खोजी गरिरहेको छ । ७ दिन बनारसमा बन्धक बनेर फर्किएका मधुवन नगरपालिकाका २ महिलाले दिएको उजुरीका आधारमा प्रहरीले खोजी गरिरहेको हो । यिनले भारतमा १ सय ५० जना महिला बन्धक बनाएको भागेर आएका महिलाको बयानका आधारमा प्रहरीले जनाएको छ । ‘दलालको नाम ठेगाना यहि हो भन्ने पुष्टि भएको छैन’ बर्दियाका प्रहरी प्रमुख प्रहरी उपरीक्षक जनक भट्टराईले भन्नुभयो–‘पीडित महिलाहरुले दिएको उजुरी र फोटोको आधारमा खोजी भइरहेको छ ।’ विभिन्न प्रलोभनमा पारी महिलालाई बेच्ने दलालको फोटोको आधारमा खोज्न समस्या भइरहेको प्रहरीको भनाइ छ । पीडित महिलालाई दलालले बताएको नाम ठेगाना सही हो या होईन भन्ने आधिकारिक पुष्टि नहुँदा खोजी तथा उद्धार कार्यले देखिने गरी सफलता नपाएको प्रमुख जिल्ला अधिकारी रामबहादुर कुरुम्बाङ्गको बताउनुभयो । नेपाली महिलालाई बन्धन बनाइएको घरबाट दलालहरुले नेपाली टोली पुग्नु अघि नै अन्य स्थानमा स्थानान्तरण गरिसकेका कारण उद्धारका लागि पुगेको नेपाली भारतको बनारसबाट खाली हात फर्किनु परेको थियो । उक्त विषयमा भारतीय प्रहरीसँग दिनहुँ सम्पर्क भइरहेको प्रशासनको दावी छ । यसैबीच दलालहरुले बाहिर लैजान सक्ने भन्दै बनारसको लालबहादुर शास्त्री अन्तराष्ट्रिय विमानस्थलबाट पर्यटक भिसा दिन केही समयलाई बन्द गरिएको प्रमुख जिल्ला अधिकारी कुरुम्बाङ्गको भनाइ छ । ‘यो पनि खोज तथा उद्धारको लागि राम्रै उपलब्धि हो’ उँहाले भन्नुभयो ‘दलाल पक्रन र पीडित अन्य महिलाको उद्धारको लागि प्रशासन निरन्तर लागि रहेको छ ।’