Status Quo Of Sex Workers In India: A Decade Long Judgement

Introduction

Sex Workers are often looked at in bad light and with prejudice but they are also human beings who shouldn’t be shunned because of the work they do. They must be given the liberty and the right to live with dignity and respect. Just because they are in the sex work trade it doesn’t give anyone the right to harm their life and liberty because everyone is equal before the law and the same has been ensured under articles 21 and 14 of the Indian constitution which cannot be snatched away just because of a profession. Sex workers for centuries have lived in squalor and dilapidated conditions. Recently, after more than a decade SC finally gave its landmark judgment in the case of Budhadev Karmaskar vs The State of West Bengal and Ors.

[Image Sources : Getty images]

Facts

In the year 1999, the convicted around 9:15 pm reached the doorstep of the deceased who is a sex worker and live in red light area and she denied performing, and convicted brutally beaten the deceased in a fit of anger and beat her to death banging her head several times on the floor smashing it and thrashed her with hands and legs on the whole body. This was witnessed by four sex workers. The blood was incessantly oozing out of her nose, head, and ear. The deceased was declared dead on arrival. This was a barbaric and heinous incident that happened with one sex worker and got highlighted but every day these incidents take place in red light areas which are often neglected and many more sex workers have lost their lives dues to such incidents and brutal behaviour. The brutality of this case shows the actual conditions of sex workers in our country. Subsequently, the convicted were punished under section 302 IPC for murder and imprisoned for life. An appeal was filed by the convicted the SC rejected the appeal and SC on 19-07-2011 constituted a Panel consisting of Mr. Pradip Ghosh as the Chairman of the Panel, Mr. Jayant Bhushan, Senior counsel, Usha Multipurpose Co-operative Society through its President/Secretary, Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee through its President/Secretary, and Roshni through Ms. Saima Hasan. The main purpose of the panel was to make recommendations on mainly three areas:

1. Prevention of trafficking,
2. Rehabilitation of sex workers who wish to leave sex work, and
3. Conditions conducive for sex workers who wish to continue working as sex workers with dignity.

The panel submitted a detailed report in the year 2016 and to date, the government of India has not legalized any draft following the report hence there is no such law so till date for the protection and rehabilitation of sex workers so SC exercised its power under article 142 of Indian constitution and passed a judgment which will hold valid till the central government forms any legislation on it. The judgment holds sex work as a legal profession with equal dignity and rights. Some women under abysmal conditions have to opt for this profession and sometimes, they are forced into this profession by traffickers. This doesn’t make them invisible in society and invisible in front of the law. Directions issued in this judgment are only for the rehabilitation of sex workers and other related issues.

Recommendations of the Panel-:

1. Sex workers should not be discriminated against by the police whenever they file a complaint about sexual or any other offense, they must be treated equally with the provision of law entitled to any other person. They must give be given the same treatment as a survivor of a sexual offense.
2. The sex work is legal hence the Sex Workers should not be arrested while doing their work only running a brothel is unlawful hence police should not interfere with the work of sex workers and harass them unlawfully.
3. The Press Council of India must issue stringent guidelines that media houses should prevent revealing photos and names of sex workers who are rescued or arrested during an operation.
4. Sex Workers should not be denied Aadhar Cards they should be issued Aadhar Cards based on the proforma certificate issued by UIDAI submitted by the NACO officer along with the Aadhar application.
5. No child of a Sex Worker should be separated from his mother merely on the grounds of the profession of the mother.

All these recommendations were passed by a three judges bench composed of L. Nageswara Rao as the head of the bench, B.R. Gavai, and A.S. Bopanna.

The terms sex work and prostitution are different sex work means sex for work where an adult sex worker with consent voluntarily engages itself in sex work and gets paid for it and it is legal whereas prostitution is stigmatized, demeaning and illegal it also includes trafficked girls forced to engage in sexual activities this also includes owing a brothel and soliciting of the sexual activities in public making it illegal under The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956. Both the terms are often used in the same sense. Prostitution has vast health hazards as well. Exploiting a person sexually for a commercial purpose is illegal. Employing underage girls for sexual favour and regularly exploiting them is also illegal under this act. Procuring places to open a brothel is also unlawful. Soliciting sex work and calling for customers is utterly illegal according to the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956.

Conclusion

It is been more than a decade since the recommendation came into force and it will take a decade more for the police and the society to accept them and look at sex workers as normal human beings. Sex Workers are often exposed to abuse and many health problems. They do not have their own choice and no rights over their own body and they are exploited in most barbaric manners. When they expect some protection from the police, they get exploited and abused by them as well. Even these big media houses preaching morality and equality do not even think once before flashing their names and photos on prime time. This will be a long battle for the Sex Workers with the society this just does not end here, with recommendations in force. Even though it is a progressive judgment, the ground reality is often adverse. Sex Workers are humans who deserve to live with dignity under inhumane conditions. Authorities must be sensitive while looking at them primarily they must be properly educated about their rights and liabilities they must be made aware that even they have the right to file a complaint about sexual offenses against them. The right to motherhood should not be snatched away from a sex worker. They must be provided appropriate knowledge with free health camps as they are the ones living in the filthiest conditions. For ages they have borne the stigma of society, now it is high time that their cloaks of invisibility should be removed.

Author: Bhuwaneshi Gupta, New Law College, BVP, Pune, in case of any queries please contact/write back to us at support@ipandlegalfilings.com or   IP & Legal Filing.

References

1. https://www.livelaw.in/columns/rehabilitation-of-sex-workers-immoral-traffic-prevention-act-prostitution-sexual-exploitation-budhadev-karmaskar-201625
2. https://thelegallamablog.wixsite.com/website/post/budhadev-karmaskar-v-state-of-west-bengal
3. https://indiankanoon.org/doc/145721634/
4. https://legislative.gov.in/sites/default/files/COI_English.pdf