The Hyderabad Police on Tuesday arrested three Omanis and two local residents for allegedly trafficking minor girls from the city in the name of “contract marriages” with older men in Gulf nations, PTI reported. Among the arrested was Chief Qazi Ali Abudullah Rifai, who allegedly maintained a network of brokers who sent girls to foreigners.
The police said one of the Omanis arrested, Al Sheyadi Sulaiman, had claimed he had come to Hyderabad for medical treatment, but was looking to get married. Another Omani, who worked as a broker, had brought Sulaiman to Hyderabad.
A third Omani, a 75-year-old who is believed to have already been married 10 times, was brought to the city to wed another woman, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (South Zone) V Satyanarayana. All the men from Oman had been in touch with the chief Qazi, the police officer added.
Investigators are trying to trace the minor girls who were trafficked. Searches are also on for the middlemen who broker these “contract marriages” and help traffick the minors from poor families.
On September 20, the Hyderabad Police had rescued two minor girls and busted the contract marriage racket, PTI reported. At least 20 people, including five Oman and three Qatar nationals, had been arrested.
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