RED LIGHT AREAS: A MATTER OF DELIGHT OR THE BRUSHED ASIDE PLIGHTS?

Abstract

‘Prostitution’ and ‘Sex workers’ are nothing new to the society but the way society see the one engaged in such acts is something which is often ignored. Dating back to the historical period of Chanakya till tomorrow, this phenomenon has reserved its place in the society. Like it happens with every other socio-legal issue challenging the age-old ideology of the people, the ‘sex workers’ also face a lot of social stigmas as the society have divided opinions. For some it is an evil while for some it is merely a way of earning a livelihood.

There arises a lot of questions like, why these socially stigmatized people just stop getting engaged in such acts? If they are doing it as per their will then what’s the problem? What about those who are forcibly engaged in such acts? What about the health and other benefits of this population? Are there any laws governing their act? Like this the series goes on and on. This article will attempt to answer these questions with some suggestion to work upon at this point of time. The primary objective of the article is to brief the reader about the current situation of prostitution and prostitutes in the country.     

Key words: red light areas, Gigolo, Prostitutes, ITPA, Constitution