Malvani Raid: Zonal police defend action

Say there were repeated complaints from locals about ‘immoral activities’, two rape cases in which victims were minor had taken place in same hotel.

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The Mumbai Police had booked couples for alleged indecent behaviour Thursday after knocking on hotel rooms and carting them away to Malvani police station.

Even as top cops admitted that the Thursday raid was a mistake, zonal officials continued to defend it saying the Malvani police were only acting on continuous complaints from local residents against alleged immoral activities going on in the area. The police cited examples of two rape cases reported in the past, in which the place of the offence was the Mantra Residency hotel in Malvani, which was raided by the police last week.

The Mumbai Police registered a record 54 cases while conducting a drive under the Maharashtra (Bombay) Police Act last week, of which 13 were against young couples who were rounded up from inside their hotel rooms, sparking off a debate on whether the men in khaki were indulging in moral policing.

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“A couple of years ago, a minor was kidnapped and sexually assaulted at the same hotel. Last year, another minor was sexually abused at the same hotel. After we received repeated complaints from the locals against the hotel, a raid was carried out,” a senior police officer told The Indian Express.

“The deputy commissioner of police acted after he received repeated complaints of eve-teasing by drunk men at the beach and also complaints of soliciting clients outside the motels in Malvani, which the locals claim brought disrepute to their locality.

They had also appealed to local MLA Aslam Sheikh to take up the issue and we had even received a letter from him detailing the grievances of the locals, especially young girls who were molested by men who drank liquor at the beach, which is illegal under the BP Act,” he added.

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Facing criticism, the police had Sunday ordered an inquiry into the matter.

Additional Commissioner of Police (North) Fattesinh Patil will probe if the complaints on which the raids were conducted merited the action and if any police official was ‘overzealous’ and unnecessarily booked the couples.
“If we find anyone acting outside the brief, requisite action under law will be taken against the official,” said Deven Bharti, Joint Commissioner of Police (Law and Order).

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