UP govt to bring back anti-Romeo squads
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The Uttar Pradesh government plans to revive anti-Romeo teams, which were initially established purportedly to prevent women from being sexually harassed. In a meeting on Wednesday in the Ambedkar Nagar district, Chief Minister Adityanath requested that officials reactivate the squads.
“Emphasising the need for an environment free of fear, Adityanath said the safety of women should be a top priority,” the state government said, reported The Hindu. “He ordered the reactivation of the Anti-Romeo Squad team and directed district-level officers to ensure public hearings and communication.”
The statement added: “Additionally, he stressed the importance of the timely and quality resolution of complaints received on the IGRS and Chief Minister Helpline Portal, with complainant satisfaction being a top priority.”
The anti-Romeo squads were started by the Adityanath-led BJP government in 2017 following his initial election as chief minister. The police officers that made up the squads mostly targeted boys who were seen outside of female colleges and those who were suspected of harassing women, Scroll.in reported.
It did, however, come under fire frequently for harassing consensual couples. Over 14,454 males were arrested by anti-Romeo squads between March 2017 and December 2020. In addition, they engaged in a variety of extralegal activities, such as public humiliation exercises like sit-ups, head-shavings, face-blackening, and extortion in exchange for their release.