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A 17-year-old tribal girl from Odisha’s Dhenkanal district, who was allegedly trafficked to Uttar Pradesh’s Jhansi district under the pretext of a job, sold twice and subjected to repeated sexual and physical abuse for two years, escaped last week with the help of a local lawyer and returned home, police said.

Police are on the lookout for the prime accused, who is absconding. (AI-generated image)Police said they have launched an investigation after the survivor lodged a complaint on May 23 at Kamakshyanagar police station and are on the lookout for the prime accused, who is absconding.

“A woman has filed a complaint alleging assault in Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh after a man from Odisha sold her there. The suspect is currently on the run,” said Jitendra Mallick, inspector-in-charge of Kamakshyanagar police station.

According to the FIR, the girl was living in the Kankadahada area of Dhenkanal district after her mother’s second marriage when a local man approached her in 2024 with an offer of employment in Bhubaneswar.

Instead of a job in Bhubaneswar, she and three other girls were trafficked to Uttar Pradesh and handed over to a man named Asish Yadav in the Jhansi district.

The victim said she was confined to Asish’s home in Jhansi for three months, where Asish and his father Kalyan repeatedly assaulted her.

“When I became pregnant as a result of the abuse, Asish’s mother, Urmila, arranged for a forced medical abortion,” the FIR said.

After the abortion, the girl was sold to a person named Chandrapal Kushwaha for ₹50,000 December 2024.

“Chandrapal raped me first. Then his elder brother and two uncles took turns. This went on for two years,” the FIR added.

The minor eventually escaped one night with the help of a local advocate and made her way to the Jhansi district headquarters last week. But the police offered no relief and sent her back to Odisha. Police as well as lawyers believe the case may be part of a far wider pattern. Madhur Yadav, an advocate who helped the girl flee, said trafficking of this nature was routine.