Yogi Adityanath’s Anti-Romeo Squad in Uttar Pradesh: A bane or boon in ‘disguise’ for youngsters?
Varanasi, Mar 24: Keeping one of the key promises of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered to constitute Anti-Romeo Squads across the state to check eve-teasing, stalking, harassment of women and moreover, to bring the alleged ‘love jihad’ campaign under control. The Anti-Romeo Squad came into action in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary constituency Varanasi on Thursday and caught seven suspected Romeos. Though the idea behind the Anti-Romeo Squads is to prevent crimes against women, but many suspect it’s a mere moral policing.
How the Anti-Romeo Squad is functioning?
A team of police will move around schools, colleges and markets, looking for “Romeos” who harass women. The team will also have female cops. The squad is expected to monitor activities of men in areas and at events where the presence of girls will be larger in number. If a man is caught eve-teasing or passing lewd comments, the police will call his parents and give a warning. If the nature of the crime is serious, the person will be booked.
How to spot a Romeo?
Though it seems a difficult task as not all men wearing T-shirt and Jeans or funky clothes are eve-teaser, but the Uttar Pradesh police is smart enough to identify a romeo by the way they stand. No matter how strange it sounds, but this is true. “Ab kisi ke chehre pe to nahi likha hota ki kaun Romeo hai. Par humari itne saal ki duty hai ki hum ladkon ki ankhon se, unke chehre se aur unke khade hone ke andaz se pehchaan lete hain ki kaun sharif ghar ka hai aur kaun Romeo hai (While people’s faces don’t have ‘Romeo’ written on them, we have been in the police force for so many years that we can identify them just by the look in their eyes, their face, and the way they stand),” a male constable was quoted as saying by the Times of India.
Why Anti-Romeo Squad is not offering anything useful for women safety:
Crimes against women can brought under control if the police and government implement the pro-women laws that have already existed. A proper implementation of such laws and consistent patrolling would provide adequate security to women in public places and force men to think twice before doing any physical or verbal harm to them. The police has no right to stop a boy from talking to a girl as long as he is not breaking the law. The very idea that stopping men from interacting with women would curb the crimes against women is nonsensical.
Moreover, in the Indian society, there are very few public spaces for women or unmarried couples because of the conservative mindset of people. An initiative like Anti-Romeo squad will take away that little space as well.
A positive side:
Every action of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is being seen as some kind of an attack on minorities because of his past provocative speeches. But one cannot look away from the harsh reality that yes women often become subject to harassment and lewd comments. There are ‘romeos’ who roam around girls’ colleges and hostels. Nasty comment on attires, or in fact no matter what they wear, has become common women. Such anti-romeo drives are being carried out by cops in other states in various names. But Yogi Adityanath has made it official, which will make the cops accountable if they violate human rights in the name of women safety.
Since the order has been conveyed by the Chief Minister, entire media will keenly observe every action of the Anti-Romeo Squad, which will eventually force the police to act in the ambit of laws. The presence of police at places where women easily become prey to eve-teasers will surely make a difference. Most of the times girls don’t even report eve-teasing or harassment cases to avoid visiting police station. But they can easily approach the Anti-Romeo Squad for prompt action against such men.
