Andhra Pradesh High Court - Amravati
Mahali Jyothi Silpa, vs The State Of Andhra Pradesh, on 8 July, 2024
APHC010269252024
IN THE HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA
PRADESH
[3365]
AT AMARAVATI
(Special Original Jurisdiction)
MONDAY ,THE EIGHTH DAY OF JULY
TWO THOUSAND AND TWENTY FOUR
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE JUSTICE DR V R K KRUPA SAGAR
CRIMINAL PETITION NO: 4296/2024
Between:
Mahali Jyothi Silpa, ...PETITIONER/ACCUSED
AND
The State Of Andhra Pradesh ...RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT
Counsel for the Petitioner/accused:
1. RITHVIKA KOGANTI
Counsel for the Respondent/complainant:
1. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR
The Court made the following:
2
THE HON'BLE JUSTICE Dr. V.R.K.KRUPA SAGAR
CRIMINAL PEITION No.4296 of 2024
ORDER:
1. The claim for anticipatory bail sought by petitioner/A1 arose in the context of following facts: -
2. There is Roase King Unisex Saloon in D.No.54-20/1/12, First Floor at Gurunanak Colony, CTO Road, Vijayawada. It has certificate of registration of establishment and the name of the employer is A1/petitioner herein. The police officers of Patamata Police Station had credible information that in the above referred premises, it is not only the spa that has been run but a brothel house has been in operation. Having obtained permissions for inspection of it from the superior police officers, a team of men and women police officers along with panch witnesses raided the premises on 23.05.2024 at about 6.00 pm. In one of the rooms, they found a half nude male and a half nude female and two packets of condoms. They questioned the female and she disclosed that she was a beautician and was a married women with children and was not taken care of by husband and she wanted to earn for herself and intended to work as a beautician and in the process, she came in touch with A1 and joined the saloon as a beautician. After joining there, she found A2 also. This A1 and A2 compelled her to indulge in acts of prostitution. She further disclosed that when she refused to accept it, the accused threatened her that they would circulate bad rumors 3 against her character. It was in such circumstances, she agreed for it and at the material point of time, the man with her paid Rs.2,000/- to A2 and selected her out of two such women available in the premises and while they were in the act, the police party came. The raid party also found the other women who was stated to be the another prostitute along with the earlier mentioned women and on questioning her, she also disclosed similar plight of her. They questioned the customer and recorded his statement. It was in tune with what the women with him disclosed to police. The further allegation is that at the reception counter, they found A2 and their arrival perturbed her and police questioned her and she disclosed various facts which include her confession. Police seized two mobile phones from her. One mobile has been used exclusively for receiving payments online. The other mobile phone has been maintained for other purposes. On her statement, the police recovered Rs.60,000/- which, according to prosecution, was the money earned by A2 by the management of the spa through the acts of trafficking. Investigating team also seized mobile phone of the customer who had made Rs.2,000/- payment to A2 through payment apps. A2 was arrested. FIR was registered. A2 was produced before learned VI Metropolitan Magistrate, Vijayawada who remanded her to judicial custody on 24.05.2024. However, A1 is at large and filed this petition under Section 438 of the CrPC seeking anticipatory bail in FIR.No.400 of 2024 on the file of Patamata Police Station, Vijayawada City, NTR District for the offences punishable under Sections 370(A)(2) and 370(3) of the IPC and 4 Section 3, 4, 5 and 7 of the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act (for short "the ITP Act, 1956".
3. Article 23 of the Constitution of India reads as below: -
Trafficking in Human Beings: -
(1)."Traffic in human beings and beggar and other similar forms of forced labour are prohibited and any contravention of this provision shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law."
(2)......
Dealing of trading in something illegal is trafficking. Human trafficking involves illegal recruitment of human beings for the purpose of exploitation often through deception.
4. "No nation, with all its boasts and all its hopes, can ever morally be clean till all its women are really free - free to live without sale of their young flesh to lascivious wealth or commercializing their luscious figures...." Vide Chitan J.Vaswani V. State of West Bengal1
5. learned counsel for petitioner submits that the petitioner is innocent and she has been running a legally approved saloon/ spa and false case is foisted against her. Learned counsel further contends that she never indulged in any trafficking and the case 1 (1975) 2 SCC 829 5 diary does not disclose any coercion or fraud on her part in compelling any women for prostitution. Therefore, according to the learned counsel, the material on record does not show prima facie case and therefore she makes out a case for anticipatory bail.
6. Prostitution means the sexual exploitation or abuse of persons for commercial purposes2.
• Brothel includes any house or room or any place which is used for the purposes of sexual exploitation or abuse for the gain of another person or for the mutual gain of two or more prostitutes3.
• Section 3 of the Act, 1956 - provides the punishment for keeping a brothel.
• Section 4 of the Act, 1956 - penalizes for living on the earnings of prostitution.
• Section 5 of the Act, 1956 - penalizes a person who procures another with or without the consent for the purpose of prostitution.
• Section 370 of the IPC - who ever for the purpose of exploitation receives a person by abuse of power or by inducement and uses the person for commercial, sexual purposes is trafficking.
2Section 2(f) of the ITP Act, 1956 3 Section 2(a) of the ITP Act, 1956 6
7. The record placed before this court indicates the following facts: -
• The petitioner/A1 though a registered owner of this saloon as admitted by her, she has not made herself available for legal process and has been at large and thus not co- operated with the investigation.
• The record placed before this court further discloses the statements of the victims who said that they were compelled for prostitution.
• A reading of the allegations of the prosecution do indicate that other than the permitted activities, this petitioner has been using the premises for commercial sexual exploitation.
• The offences are very grave and heinous and they require further deep investigation.
8. In these circumstances, this court finds that this is not a fit case for granting anticipatory bail.
9. In the result, this criminal petition is dismissed.
________________________ Dr. V.R.K.KRUPA SAGAR, J Date: 08.07.2024 Dvs 7 THE HON'BLE JUSTICE Dr. V.R.K.KRUPA SAGAR CRIMINAL PETITION No.4296 of 2024 Date: 08.07.2024 Dvs