The Supreme Court has ruled that women rescued from forced sex work must not be treated as criminals and have a full right to rebuild their lives with dignity. The court also issued a new set of directions for police to follow during rescue and post-rescue procedures.
The directions came in a long-running public interest case filed by the NGO Prajwala, seeking measures to ensure that women trafficked for sexual exploitation are rescued and supported to live safely and respectfully. A bench comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan invoked special powers to lay down a “Victim Protection Plan”.
The plan is built on six core principles: prioritising human rights and dignity; treating rescued women as victims, not offenders; ensuring rehabilitation is not forced without the woman’s consent; preventing stigma and discrimination; providing full protection from threats through state governments; and safeguarding identity and privacy at all stages.
The court also set operational limits for police. Rescued women must not be kept overnight in police stations or anti-trafficking units; adults must be produced before a magistrate and minors before the Child Welfare Committee, and if age is doubtful they must be treated as children. Protection cannot be reduced based on whether a victim cooperates with questioning, and police must not photograph or video rescued women.
Further, the court directed that district anti-trafficking units be led only by a DSP-rank officer, include at least two women police officers and cyber crime officers, and conduct thorough searches during raids. It also called for a database of traffickers, buyers, sellers and financiers to be compiled and sent monthly to the ADGP, and urged the Centre to enact a comprehensive law using current technology to prevent trafficking—while cautioning against unnecessarily subjecting consenting adult sex workers to rescue actions.
