A woman NGO worker, who was in charge of the security of two girls rescued from a prostitute quarter at Bowbazar in Kolkata a week ago, was brutally murdered at her office in the city on Tuesday night. Police said Kabita Roy was the security officer of a prominent NGO working for the rehabilitation of sex workers in Sonagachi, the biggest red light area of India.
“This morning, after recovery of the body of Roy, the two girls also were found missing,” said an officer of the Kolkata police’s homicide section.
The girls, residents of Bongagon, near to Bangladesh border, were allegedly abducted by two men who promised them job at a place in Kolkata two months ago. But they landed at a prostitute quarter at Bowbazar at the heart of the central Kolkata. The youths also had reportedly promised to marry both the girls.
A month back, a complaint was lodged with the NGO by the family of the girls seeking help to rescue them. The NGO, which has its own security wing, took help from the local police and entered the brothel a week back and rescued both the girls.
The NGO kept the girls at their office located near to the red light zone of Sonagachi at Sovabazar in North Kolkata. Apart from working to prevent the minor girl trafficking, the NGO works for the prevention of HIV disease among the sex workers of Sonagachi. So, they placed one of their offices close to Sonagachi area, where they decided to shelter the rescued girls.
According to police, Roy was possibly strangled and her head was hit with a hammer. “She was found lying on the floor of the house profusely bleeding,” said the officer.
The two girls, who were sheltered in another room, have been found missing since morning.
“We are trying to rescue the girls and then will look for the culprits. We recovered the hammer from the place of occurrence,” the officer said.
The body has been sent for post-mortem.