Jan. 22: Janmoni Karmakar, a 13-year-old girl, was rescued from railway gate number 7 in Bharalumukh last night by a few members of the All Guwahati Students Union (AGSU).

They noticed the girl struggling to free herself from the clutches of a few men on the tracks and rushed to rescue her.

After rescuing Janmoni, the members of the union handed her over to Bharalumukh police station yesterday around 9pm.

Police in the meantime contacted Childline, Guwahati, which kept Janmoni for the night.

She was finally handed over to her parents today by the police.

Sources said Janmoni hails from the Gohainsuk village in the Sivasagar district.

She was forcibly taken by an individual to Calcutta where she was sold to another man for Rs 1,000.

The man who had bought her handed her over to a city-based Manipuri woman as domestic help.

After returning from Calcutta, Janmoni had no other option than to live with the woman who made her do all household chores and even physically abused her frequently. Janmoni was driven out by her employer yesterday. This was how she ended up on the deserted railway tracks.

“A few of us were having a chat along with members of the Youth Athletic Club in the evening on Saturday when we noticed the young girl struggling to get away from a few men who were manhandling her after finding her loitering on the railway tracks alone. When we rushed to the spot, the men ran away. We brought her to the club and asked her who she was but she was too traumatised to speak.

“The youths handed over Janmoni to us, but so far no case has been filed against anyone. As she is a minor, we contacted Childline, Guwahati, who provided her shelter for the night.

“Today, she was united with her parents,” a policeman of Bharalumukh police station said.

“After Janmoni named her village, we tried to contact members of the All Assam Students’ Union (ASSU) in Sivasagar, who after much effort was able to locate her home at night. Her parents said she went missing from her village about six months ago. The ASSU members there arranged for tickets so that her parents could collect her from Childline Guwahati today,” Das said.

Childline is a national-level helpline for protection and development of children. 1098, the toll free number of Childline, not only responds to the emergency needs of children but also provides services for their long-term care and rehabilitation.