Six from Assam and Meghalaya charged by NIA for trafficking Rohingya and Bangladeshi

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has named six people from Assam and Meghalaya in a charge sheet for allegedly trafficking Rohingya and Bangladeshi women into India using forged credentials. On Saturday, the charge papers were submitted before the NIA special court in Guwahati.

"Investigation has revealed that the accused persons were involved in organised human trafficking of Rohingyas/Bangladeshi minor girls, women in association with other conspirators based in different parts of the India and Bangladesh. The accused persons had arranged for transportation, accommodation, procurement of fake documents etc. for the trafficked Rohingya victims," the NIA said in a statement on Sunday morning.

Sections 120B, 370(3), and 370(5) of the Indian Penal Code have been invoked to charge the defendants.

Five of the defendants are from the Cachar district in South Assam: Kumkum Ahmed Choudhury, Ahiya Ahmed Choudhury, Bapan Ahmed Choudhury, Sahalam Laskar, and Jamaluddin Choudhury. Wanbiang Suting, the sixth individual, is from Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills.

In March of this year, the six were apprehended. According to the NIA, the human trafficking network was run out of Bengaluru by 'main accused' Kumkum Ahmed Choudhury.

Assam and Meghalaya share a border with Bangladesh, where thousands of Rohingya refugees have sought asylum following ethnic violence in Myanmar.

After several Rohingya refugees were arrested in Assam for travelling without proper documents in December of last year, the NIA took over the matter. The agency is looking into the alleged exploitative trafficking of Rohingyas and Bangladeshis into India, as well as granting them permanent entry using forged Indian credentials.