The city police feel pornography is one of the factors behind male-perpetuated harassment directed at women. At a consultation meet held here on Friday, officials of SHE Teams said they often see a link between the porn browsing history and the offences recorded.
During her Friday’s presentation detailing harassment that women face at public spaces, Assistant Commissioner of Police, SHE Teams, D. Kavitha, said porn-watching habits often drive offenders to harass women. She further told The Hindu that questioning the offenders after catching them often reveals an addiction to porn.
“Sometimes, offenders as young as 17 year olds behave in a shocking manner towards women. Upon interaction, we learn that many have been habituated to watching porn,” Ms. Kavitha said.
Public Wi-Fi spots
Though the police do not have usage data from such networks, they suspect public Wi-Fi spots are increasingly being used to view porn. Incidentally, they were told at the consultation meet that such networks with unfettered internet access could also be hotspots for women harassment.
“A few areas have been named and we will identify more. We will observe the areas and see what kind of activities are taking place before taking action,” the official said.
The SHE Teams of the city police already has S.R. Nagar, Ameerpet, Dilsukhnagar and other crowded areas under its radar. These areas have gained notoriety for reporting harassment against women in public. Gachibowli and Kukatpally were two other areas named on Friday.
Restricting access to pornography would be an uphill task, confide internet service providers, who have partnered with the State government to provide free internet access at nearly 3,000 locations across the city. “It may be possible to block a few websites, but given that there are number of ways to access such content, it is nearly impossibly to prevent it. Such a move can only be made by the Indian government,” said an official with an ISP. It remains to be seen how the police will act to lower crimes against women.
