Anti-Romeo Squads Arrested 14,454 People Since 2017, Says UP Police In RTI Reply

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The Logical Indian Crew

'Anti-Romeo Squads Arrested 14,454 People Since 2017', Says UP Police In RTI Reply

Days after Yogi Adityanath took over as UP chief minister in 2017, the state government introduced anti-Romeo squads to ensure women safety in the state.

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The Uttar Pradesh police and the state machinery have received incessant backlash after several horrific gang-rape cases from Badaun, Hathras and other parts of the state surfaced. People have been asking where the states' Anti-Romeo squads are and what are they doing to ensure women safety.

Days after Yogi Adityanath took over as UP chief minister in 2017, the state government introduced anti-Romeo squads to ensure women safety in the state.

The squads came under the scanner after they were accused of moral policing and harassing consenting couples in public. Soon after, the squads stopped making headlines.

India Today TV filed a Right to Information (RTI) application with the Uttar Pradesh Police to understand the effectiveness of the anti-Romeo squads and the arrests they have made.

"Between 22.03.2017 and 30.11.2020, 14,454 people have been arrested," the RTI reply revealed. This is equal to 11 arrests a day, it mentioned.

The UP Police says Anti-Romeo squads were constituted on 22.03.2017 in all districts to prevent eve-teasing, indecency, vulgar display, or comments against women and teenagers.

"The district police appoint police personnel in Anti-Romeo squads based on need," the RTI reply stated.

However, crimes against women in UP have not witnessed any decline.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data in 2017, when the Anti-Romeo squads were formed, there were 153 cases of crimes against women every day. In 2019, the figure stood at 164. However, the number of rape cases in UP reduced after the squads were formed.

Rape cases in the state in 2017 stood at 13 per day, this reduced to 8 every day in 2019.

Also Read: Karnataka Muslim Man Booked Under "Love Jihad" In UP After Parents Allege He "Lured" Daughter

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Editor : Shweta Kothari
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