Photo Credits: KASHYAP
QUOTE
PIC: KASHYAP
Only when these escort website offer sexual services or solicit sexual favours that is when it is covered under the Immoral Trafficking Act or under different sections of IPC.
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SLUG
ONLINE FLESH TRADE
INTRO
The Goan media very often highlights reports of Escort services website, which allegedly promotes prostitution, but the State police has for long been shying away from the issue maintaining its claim of non-jurisdiction over the internet. SURAJ NANDREKAR speaks to Crime Branch SP Karthik Kashyap, who also heads the Goa Police Cyber Cell, on the issue and the problems they face while dealing with such crimes.
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The Goan: The Escort Services website offering sexual services through the internet is a new form of promoting prostitution. What is the Goa Police doing to tackle the issue?
SP Kashyap: Human trafficking is a very serious issue and statistics in the last 18 to 20 months show that 55 percent of the cases under the immoral trafficking act was handled by the Crime Branch. Hundreds of girls were rescued in the raids and pimps arrested which shows how serious we are and Goa police is about the issue.
The Goan: Despite the raids and arrests the escort service website continues to operate?
Kashyap: Ninety nine percent of the servers of the websites you are talking about are located outside the country and whenever we ask for their IP addresses and details of basically who is using these websites it is not provided by the servers. Also, most of the servers are in those countries where there are no mutual legal agreement treaties.
The Goan: Please continue….
Kashyap: You also need to understand that escort website per se is not covered under the Immoral Trafficking Act as they are not offering sexual services directly. Only when these escort website offer sexual services or solicit sexual favours that is when it is covered under the Immoral Trafficking Act or under different sections of IPC.
The Goan: But cell phone numbers have been provided on websites through which you can act.
Kashyap: Well, you may say there are cell phone numbers provided on the websites but these are mostly VOIP (Voice over internet protocol) numbers and these are again routed through certain anonymous servers and sites. So whenever a customer calls the number it is received by some agent in Delhi and he in turn contacts his counterpart in Goa (who is just a pimp) and brokers the deal and supplies the escorts. Based on these numbers we have conducted many raids. But again, the bigger players operating in the racket are mostly not here.
The Goan: Can’t these websites be blocked?
Kashyap: We have written to Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT). Believe me, it is not such an easy thing like blocking a SIM card or a telephone line. Blocking internet traffic has huge cost implications on the Government of India plus there are other legal implications. Blocking websites also slows down the entire speed of internet and that is why it is very difficult for anybody to tame the internet. Wherever it is possible to shut the website we are writing to the concerned authorities.
The Goan: You mean to say the Goa police or the Government of Goa has no authority to block website even through service providers?
Kashyap: The Government of Goa cannot do it, the Government of India has a certain unit called CERT, it is the nodal agency to block traffic or monitor the internet. Service providers can’t block a website unless they are directed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) or CERT as it involves huge cost implications and hence they do it only under the gudielines from Centre.
The Goan: Recently an NGO Gen Next alleged that the police is selectively targeting places of menace and are hand-in-glove with the pimps. What's your say?
Kashyap: I don’t want to comment on what the NGOs are saying. I can only say whenever we have any specific information we are very happy to act and we have done it so in the past. We are acting very promptly on any information we receive and take necessary action whenever there is any information.
