MUMBAI, March 24: Embarrassed patrons at Mansarovar lodge in Bhayander (west) dived for cover on Monday evening as police turned up unannounced and exposed a thriving inter-state racket in the flesh trade in this busy middle-classlocality.The lodge at B P Road, police found, was the hub of a racket revealing a nexus between the manager of the premises, its owner and the commercial sex workers who serviced clients in 21 rooms, each housing a number of dingy cubby-holes, in the building.Investigating officer, Assistant Police Inspector M G Pimpalkar, told Express Newsline that 19 girls, most of them slum residents from Malad, Kandivli and Goregaon (East), were arrested while entertaining patrons. The girls, police said, earn a living in the flesh trade in Bhayander and Mira Road.The manager of the lodge rented out cubicles in the premises in connivance with the owner, who is ailing in his native village in Rajasthan. Police refused to divulge their names. The accused have been charged underSections 3/4 of the Prevention of Immoral Traffic Act (PITA). While the manager has been released on a personal bond, the girls were remanded to police custody till Tuesday evening by a divisional magistrate in Thane.A resident of the B P Road area, requesting anonymity, said the lodge had become a major attraction after dusk, and a large section of the clientele included youngsters.The activities at the lodge had caused concern among residents as it is located a stone's throw away from a school, a Jain temple and a vegetable market. According to a senior police official at Bhayander,``We were told that some girls hailing from West Bengal were using the lodge for prostitution and that the manager and owner used to be given a commission for the use of the premises.'' Residents of Bhayander heaved a sigh of relief after news of the raid spread. However, they hope the lucrative business in clandestine massage parlours will be next on the authorities' hitlist.
