Last Change:
04/24/2025
Prevention of Trafficking in Persons Act, 2018
Year: 2018
Type: Domestic law
Rights Category: Liberty & security of person
Description
An Act to prevent and combat trafficking in persons especially women and children. Whereas it is necessary to provide for effective measures to prevent and combat the trafficking in persons especially women and children; to promote and facilitate national and international co-operation in this regard; to protect the trafficking victims; and to provide for matters connected therewith or ancillary thereto.
Selected provisions
(1) Any person who recruits, harbours, transports, provides or obtains another person, or attempts to do so, for compelled labour or commercial sex acts through the use of force, fraud or coercion, commits an offence of trafficking in persons and shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to seven years or with fine which may extend to one million rupees or with both.
(2) If the offence of trafficking in persons under sub-section (1) is committed against a child or a woman, the person who commits the offence shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to ten years and which shall not be less than two years or with fine which may extend to one million rupees or with both.
(3) In this section:
(a) “coercion” means use or threat of use of force, or other forms of nonviolent use of force including—
(i) threat of harm to or physical restraint of any person;
(ii) any scheme, plan or pattern intended to cause a person to believe that failure to perform an act would result in serious harm to or physical restraint of any person;
(iii) threat due to the vulnerable position of a person; or psychological pressure; and
(iv) “compelled labour” includes involuntary servitude, slavery or practices similar to slavery, or debt bondage and forced labour.
Where an offender is convicted of an offence under this Act, the Court may direct payment of compensation to the victim under section 545 of the Code.
(1) The Government or a Provincial Government may, in the prescribed manner, take appropriate measures to ensure that a victim, witness of an offence under this Act or any other related person is provided adequate protection, if safety of the victim, witness or the person is at risk.
(2) When it is necessary to safeguard the physical safety of a victim or witness of an offence under this Act, the Government or a Provincial Government may, in the prescribed manner, take necessary measures to relocate victim or witness or to limit the disclosure of name of the victim or witness, address and other identifying personal information or both.