Panaji: Twenty children, including some from Bangladesh, were rescued by police during a raid at a travelling circus that had set up camp in Margao, officials said Saturday.

Children at the circus were exposed to risky conditions. Representational picure only

Friday night’s raid at the circus in Margao, 35 km from Panaji, followed a complaint by a girl, who had accused circus manager Abdulla Khan of raping her.

“The children were being made to work as acrobats and helpers in the circus,” said a police officer attached to Goa Police’s women’s police station.

The officer said Khan could also be charged with human trafficking after investigators learnt that some of the children were brought from Bangladesh to work. The rescued children were sent to Apna Ghar, a children’s home near the capital.