Free Press Journal: Mumbai: Sunday, 16 June 2024.
In May, the Free Press Journal reported that the Santacruz police, in an RTI reply, stated they have no official mandate to evict people from Juhu beach after midnight.
Mumbai Police continues to
restrict entry to people at Juhu beach post midnight after their own claim that
they do not have any order about the official timing to visit the beach. The
police had replied to a right to information appeal that it has no official
order or notification to evict people after midnight but its actions do not
agree with the RTI reply.
In May, Free Press Journal had reported about a reply given by Santacruz police to an RTI appeal which said that they have no official document requiring them to evict people from Juhu beach post midnight.
Activist Zoru Bathena had sought information from the Santacruz police earlier in April under the RTI act to provide the copy of an order or notification regardings timings for police to restrict entry to citizens to walk at Juhu beach. Responding to the RTI on April 29, Santacruz police had replied that, “No such official record is available with Santacruz police station”.
However, even after the police accepted that they have no order to remove people from the beach after midnight, the Santacruz police have not stopped its daily drill. The Free Press Journal visited the Juhu beach at midnight and observed that the police patrol vehicle made rounds on the beach around 12.30 am asking people to vacate the beach. However, a lot of people showed up to the beach post 2am after the patrolling was stopped.
Zoru Bathena, who had filed the RTI application to the Santacruz police, alleged that the beach patrol is indulging in moral policing as they want ease in their work of safeguarding people at night.
“Policemen do not shy away from their duty of guarding women’s compartments in local trains at night by saying that people should not roam at late hours. Similarly they cannot ask people to vacate the beach just because they do not want to carry out their duty. They have their own beach patrol vehicles and staff, which is supposed to check on the safety of people and not to moral police them. This act of police is morally wrong,” Bathena said.
The Free Press Journal contacted Rajendra Kane, senior police inspector at Santacruz police station, but he was not available for a comment.
In May, the Free Press Journal reported that the Santacruz police, in an RTI reply, stated they have no official mandate to evict people from Juhu beach after midnight.
In May, Free Press Journal had reported about a reply given by Santacruz police to an RTI appeal which said that they have no official document requiring them to evict people from Juhu beach post midnight.
Activist Zoru Bathena had sought information from the Santacruz police earlier in April under the RTI act to provide the copy of an order or notification regardings timings for police to restrict entry to citizens to walk at Juhu beach. Responding to the RTI on April 29, Santacruz police had replied that, “No such official record is available with Santacruz police station”.
However, even after the police accepted that they have no order to remove people from the beach after midnight, the Santacruz police have not stopped its daily drill. The Free Press Journal visited the Juhu beach at midnight and observed that the police patrol vehicle made rounds on the beach around 12.30 am asking people to vacate the beach. However, a lot of people showed up to the beach post 2am after the patrolling was stopped.
Zoru Bathena, who had filed the RTI application to the Santacruz police, alleged that the beach patrol is indulging in moral policing as they want ease in their work of safeguarding people at night.
“Policemen do not shy away from their duty of guarding women’s compartments in local trains at night by saying that people should not roam at late hours. Similarly they cannot ask people to vacate the beach just because they do not want to carry out their duty. They have their own beach patrol vehicles and staff, which is supposed to check on the safety of people and not to moral police them. This act of police is morally wrong,” Bathena said.
The Free Press Journal contacted Rajendra Kane, senior police inspector at Santacruz police station, but he was not available for a comment.
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