Centre Publishes Draft Anti Human Trafficking Bill; Proposes Death Penalty For Trafficking Of Children

The Central Government has published a draft of a Bill to deal with Human Trafficking crimes.

The Trafficking in Persons (Prevention, Care and Rehabilitation) Bill, makes the offence of Children trafficking punishable with death also.

All the stakeholders are requested to offer their comments/ suggestions on the aforesaid Bill by 14.07.2021 on the e-mail ID santanu.brajabasi@gov.in, the Ministry said in a public notice.

Trafficking in Persons

Section 23 of the Bill deals with Trafficking in Persons.

It provides that any person who: (a) Recruits, transports, transfers, harbours or receives another person; (b) By means of threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of authority or of vulnerability, or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person; (c) For the purpose of exploitation of that person, shall be guilty of an offence of trafficking in persons and upon conviction shall be subject to imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than 7 years but which may extend to 10 years and shall also be liable to a fine which shall not be less than one lakh rupees but which may extend upto five lakh rupees.

 Aggravated form of trafficking in persons

Section 25 deals with Aggravated form of trafficking in persons. 

Whoever commits an offence of trafficking in persons -

(a) where the offence resulting in the death of the victim or his dependent or any other person, including death as a result of suicide;

(b) where the victim, or his dependent or any other person suffer an injury amounting to grievous hurt, or acid attack, or genital mutilation or removal of organs, or an injury or exploitation that causes him to be in a persistent vegetative state, substantial physical or mental incapacitation, deprived of ability to live and enjoy life as a normal human being would;

(c) where the offence exposed the victim to, and inflicted upon him any life-threatening or other serious condition such as acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, silicosis, tuberculosis, or any other irreversible disease;

(d) where the offence has been caused by administering any chemical substance or hormones on a person for the purpose of early sexual maturity;

(e) where the offence was caused by administering any narcotic drug or psychotropic substance or other drugs, alcoholic or intoxicating or dependency causing substances on a victim or where such substances or means were used on a victim forcing him to remain in an exploitative condition, including by causing him to become dependent on or addicted to any such substances, which the victim would otherwise not have taken or suffered;

(f) where the victim has a mental illness or is a person with disability, or as a consequence of trafficking, the person becomes mentally ill or disabled;

(g) where the victim is a child, including through or in the guise of adoption of children;

(h) where the offence is committed on a pregnant woman, or where the offence results in forced pregnancy or forced termination of pregnancy or miscarriage of the victim;

(i) where a victim has been bought or sold;

(j) where the victim has been put in a situation of forced or bonded labour or debt bondage, or in a situation of slavery or servitude, including through retention of any identity or travel or other documents or threats of denunciation to authorities;

(k) where a person misuses his authority, or abuses his position of authority as spouse or otherwise, or misuses his fiduciary relationship with a victim as a doctor, lawyer or otherwise, or abuses the position of vulnerability of victim in any manner for the commission or in the consequence of the offence;

(l) where the offence has been committed by a public servant, or a person in charge of, or working in a childcare institution, a protection home, a rehabilitation home, or any other such centre or facility set up or identified under this Act, or any other law for the time being in force, for the safety, protection or care of victims, or of women, children, or other such vulnerable groups as maybe prescribed;

(m) where the victim is a woman or child or a transgender person who was residing in a shelter or rehabilitation home or any other facility as established, registered or identified for the purposes of this Act and has been trafficked while having been in or by being taken out of such institution or home;

(n) where the offence of trafficking in persons has been caused for the purpose of or under the pretext of or subsequent to a marriage or a relationship of same or similar nature;

(o) where the purpose or consequence of the offence is prostitution, or any other manner of sexual exploitation of, or any other sexual offence against a victim;

(p) where the victim has been forcefully confined to or retained in a brothel or any other premises being used for trafficking or for exploitation of victim;

(q) where the offence of trafficking has been committed in the cover, garb or guise of, or for any unlawful activities or exploitative purposes arising out of or relating to, apparently innocuous and legally permitted activities or enterprises such as massage parlours, spas, employment agencies, placement agencies providing domestic workers, immigration agencies or agents, travel agencies or agents, nautankis, nat, circus, melas or similar activities;

(r) where a victim who was initially got migrated under promise of or under inducement towards better life or livelihood, from one place to another, whether within or outside India, has subsequently been subjected to an offence under this Act, including where the offence involves or has been caused by or subsequent to or in continuation of smuggling of migrants in any manner, with reference to the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime;

(s) where the victim is a person affected by a natural calamity or disaster declared so by the Government, or any other kind of man made calamity or disaster, including communal or sectarian violence, warfare, insurgency, extremism or any other activity, event or purpose of similar nature pertaining to violence, law and order or internal disturbance of any kind;

(t) where the victim of the offence of trafficking has been engaged in forced or coerced beggary;

(u) where the victim of trafficking has been engaged in illicit or criminal activities, including interlaid trafficking or production of illicit drugs, firearms and ammunition; insurgency, extremism or the like;

(v) where the victim of the offence of trafficking has been subjected to illicit or illegal bio-medical research, unauthorized clinical drug trial or the like; and

(w) where a victim has been re-trafficked,

shall constitute aggravated form of trafficking in persons.

Death Penalty for Trafficking of Children

Section 26 provides for the Punishment for aggravated form of trafficking in persons. Where a person is convicted of an offence under section 25 against a child of less than twelve years of age, or against a woman for the purpose of repeated rape, the person shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for twenty years, but which may extend to life, or in case of second or subsequent conviction with death, and with fine which may extend up to thirty lakh rupees.

Punishment for offence under section 23 or 25 on more than one person or on more than one occasion is separately provided. In such cases, if the victim is a child, the offence shall be punishable on conviction with rigorous imprisonment for the remainder of that person's natural life or with death and shall also be liable to fine up to thirty lakh rupees or such other fine as is provided for that offence under any other law for the time being in force, whichever is higher.

National, State and District Anti-Human Trafficking Committees

The Bill also proposes creation of National, State and District Anti-Human Trafficking Committees, for carrying out prevention, protection, rescue, relief and rehabilitation activities.

NIA to investigate 

The Bill also provides that the National Investigation Agency shall act as the national investigating and coordinating agency responsible for prevention and combating of trafficking in persons and other offences under this Act, as well as for investigation, prosecution and coordination in cases of trafficking in persons and other offences under this Act in accordance with the provisions of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008, including cases which are inter-state or international in nature or such other cases as may be assigned to it by the Central Government.

Full Bill Draft Can Be Read Here.