Close on the heels of Yogi Adityanath taking charge as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, the police on Wednesday started an ‘anti-Romeo’ drive to curb incidents of sexual harassment across the State. One of the pre-poll promises of the BJP was to check eve-teasing.
In Ghaziabad and Bulandshahr, police were seen nabbing young men for allegedly harassing women. Facing accusations of unnecessary harassment and ‘moral policing’, Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police Javeed Ahmad defended the drive by tweeting: “Safety of girls/ladies is the sole intent of the anti Romeo squads. No moral policing”.
In Ghaziabad, action was taken against 33 persons.
Police teams have been patrolling near schools, colleges, malls, metro stations, parks and other public places since Tuesday.
They have been pulling up youth for eve-teasing and harassment.
‘Sense of insecurity’
Some of those who were nabbed alleged that they were falsely accused and unnecessarily harassed.
“Now even standing on the road, or in the park and other public place is a risky affair. I was standing and waiting for my friend. Meanwhile a cop came up to me and started questioning me. Thankfully the cop was satisfied with my answer and left the place but he kept watching me for five to 10 minutes,” said Anubhav Kumar, who works with a media house.
“My son had gone for tuition. After tuition he was talking with his friends. Some cops came up to him and picked him up. My son called me and I spoke to the cop. Later the cops released my son. Such actions are developing a sense of insecurity among youngsters and their parents,” said Taranjeet Singh, a businessman.
Parents of many youngsters expressed concerns about the way the police was picking up young men.
Ghaziabad district magistrate Nidhi Kesarwani said that five persons were arrested in Ghaziabad for eve teasing. “We have formed teams led by the deputy superintendent of police and sub-divisional magistrate officers. These teams are conducting patrols at schools, malls, parks, metro stations and will take action against eve teasers,” she said.
Who is an eve-teaser?
When asked about the standard of identifying an ‘eve teaser’, Ms. Kesarwani said: “The police and the administration team keep an eye on each persons activity in a particular area. If his acts are found suspicious, only then is he questioned”.
The squads will also check consumption of liquor at public places as it often leads to instances of eve-teasing, said the police.
