Video exposes police atrocity on Ganga Jamuna visitor

NAGPUR: The ongoing tussle between police and residents in the red-light area of Ganga Jamuna has resulted in the cops now targeting customers of the commercial sex workers (CSWs). With the high court warning against any violation of the residents’ rights, the police are now turning their attention to the customers, driving away the source of livelihood of the CSWs, which too is a violation of human rights.
A video clip, in the possession of TOI, exposes police atrocity on an apparently submissive visitor of Ganga Jamuna locality around a week ago. The youth was being thrashed by a woman constable and a male constable. The visitor can be seen seeking forgiveness with feeble gestures even as the woman cop repeatedly hits him on the face and head. The woman constable’s male colleague, who is carrying a lathi, remained a mute spectator in the clip furtively shot by a local resident.
The woman who filmed the visitor’s ordeal said that the man was dragged by his collar before being thrashed. Finally, two cops took him to the police chowkie from the Cement Road near the dargah. “Harassing customers has become a regular phenomenon now at Ganga Jamuna, with cops unnecessarily dragging them to chowkies,” she said.
A senior citizen of the locality also slammed police for chasing customers away from the locality and taking action against some of them without any provocation. “The judiciary seems to be trying to safeguard us from police atrocities, but they have now taken to driving away our means of livelihood by frightening away customers. If we don’t live, then where would be our rights be restored?” she said.
Advocate Prabhananjay Dave, a Mumbai-based expert on cases pertaining to Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Act (PITA), said there is no provision in the law to register offence against customers. “PITA has no express provision to book customers. A proposed amendment to the act has made it a criminal offence to be a customer, but it is yet to come into force,” he said.
Senior PI SB Mane of Lakadganj police station said that cops have been targeting only certain customers, who create a ruckus or are involved in brawls. “Police sometime invoke preventive actions against customers but not until they create problems,” said Mane.