Srinagar, Feb 5: The Government of Jammu and Kashmir has issued an order appointing Station House Officers (SHOs) of J&K Police, not below the rank of Inspector, along with SDPOs/DySP Headquarters, as Special Police Officers within their respective jurisdictions under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 (ITPA).
As per KNT, this decision, issued by Chandraker Bharti, Principal Secretary to the Government, supersedes all previous notifications on the subject. The move aims to strengthen enforcement mechanisms against human trafficking and sexual exploitation for commercial purposes.
Notably, the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 is an Indian law designed to curb human trafficking and the organized commercial exploitation of individuals. While the act does not criminalize prostitution per se, it penalizes activities such as running brothels, inducing individuals into prostitution, detaining persons for such purposes, and exploiting minors. Law enforcement agencies leverage the ITPA to rescue victims and prosecute traffickers, pimps, and brothel operators.
