After a studied silence for 48 long hours since Sunday, the Puri police swung into action on Tuesday with district Collector Jyoti Prakash Das ordering an investigation into the alleged sale of Dalit woman Daudi Mallick in Madhya Pradesh who was residing in Baliapanda Basti near the Puri sea beach.

“I have given an order. An investigation is going on and the necessary action will be taken,” said Das in a message to The Pioneer, which was the lone newspaper to highlight the trafficking of the poor woman.

The Collector talked to the SP as investigations are based on a written petition by the father of the victim. The incident also psoints to a trafficking racket being active in the pilgrim town.

On Sunday, complainant Aru Mallick of Brahamagiri Bauribasta village had lodged an FIR with the police that at a cost of Rs 55,000, his married daughter Daudi had been sold off to one Dhusa Singh of Janata village near Ashok Nagar railway Station of MP.

Alleging her daughter is in captivity of the person after a forcible court marriage there, he had apprehended her to be in danger. Aru had urged the police to rescue his daughter along with a handicapped girl child living with her in MP.

The complaint also reads that the victim woman’s husband Daku Mallick was living with his second wife in Baliapanda basti. After remarrying, he was torturing Daudi. To maintain her four children, Daudi was working as a daily wager in a construction site near the railway station from where she was trafficked to MP.

The three of her women co-labourers who were from same Baliapanda took her to the MP village after promising her of a good job.  Handing her over to the person, the co-laobourers returned to Puri getting Rs 55,000 from him, the complaint by the victim’s faher cited.

The Sadar police on Tuesday collected the mobile number of the victim woman from his parents besides other proofs relating to the identity of the victim. If need be, police would go to the village of MP to trace out the woman. The police have contacted with their MP counterpart for help, said a police official.