There is no provision under the law, which makes prostitution per se a criminal offence. However, seducing any person for the purpose of prostitution or running a brothel is illegal.
Observing that prostitution was not a criminal offence under the law, and that an adult woman had the right to choose her vocation, the Bombay High Court has ordered immediate release of three women sex workers detained at a state corrective institution in Mumbai.
In an order passed on Thursday, a bench of Justice Prithviraj Chavan said that prostitution had not been considered a criminal offence under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956.
Justice Chavan was hearing a plea filed by the three women challenging an order passed by the Metropolitan Magistrate, Mazgaon, that had upheld their detention at a local correctional facility against their will.
As per the HC order, the women, all in their…