The Kerala High Court on Tuesday asked the state to file a statement detailing steps taken to implement the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court to curb eve-teasing at public places.
A Division Bench comprising Justice K T Sankaran and Justice Babu Mathew P Joseph issued the directive while considering a petition filed by Laya George, chairperson of Aquinas College, Edakochi. Laya filed the petition seeking the implementation of the guidelines issued by the Supreme Court.
According to the petitioner, eve-teasing has become a pernicious and disgusting trend. Even though the Supreme Court had issued guidelines, the state government has not initiated any step to implement them.
The petitioner, Laya George said she faces untold difficulties while travelling in buses and at public places like bus stands and railway stations.
The apex court had directed the state governments and Union Territories to depute plain-clothed woman police officers in the precincts of bus stands and stops, railway stations, metro stations, cinema theatres, shopping malls, parks, beaches, public service vehicles, places of worship etc so as to monitor and supervise incidents of eve-teasing. The authorities should install CCTVs at strategic locations which itself would be a deterrent and, if detected, the offender could be caught.
The apex court had also observed that when an incident of eve-teasing occurs in a public vehicle either by any passenger or the persons in charge of it, the crew shall, on a complaint made by the aggrieved person, take it to the nearest police station and inform the police. It should lead to cancellation of permit to ply, if people fail to do so. Suitable boards cautioning such act of eve-teasing should be exhibited at all public places.
This includes precincts of educational institutions, bus stands, railway stations, cinema theatres, parks, beaches, public service vehicles, places of worship etc, stated the petition which was filed seeking implementation of the guidelines.