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Smt Maneka Gandhi, the Indian minister for women & child development, is likely to table ‘The Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill 2018’ (hereafter, the bill) in the monsoon session of parliament scheduled to take place be-tween 18 July and 18 August 2018. The minister’s aspiration to make India a leader among South Asian countries to combat trafficking is laudable. Sadly, the tabled bill will, if enacted, fall far short of these expectations.
Many civil society organisations have already expressed their concerns regarding the serious shortcomings of the bill. My critique seeks to complement these other interventions by offering a commentary on the criminal law provisions of the proposed bill. Parliament must fundamentally rethink the bill to produce a well-drafted, rights-positive legislation that positions India at the forefront of the quest to achieve sustainable development goal 8.7 by ending forced labour, modern slavery, human trafficking and the worst forms of child labour.
