After minor’s gangrape, Pune police start scanning hotels, lodges to check violation of norms

Deputy Commissioner of Police Namrata Patil said they will be verifying whether proper identification proofs are being taken from those who seek a room in the lodge or hotel. They will also verify whether CCTV cameras have been installed at entry points or reception areas of hotels and lodges.

The  Pune police have begun scanning lodges and hotels across the city to check violation of rules and regulations. The move follows the gangrape of a 14-year-old girl at various places, including two lodges, located in Pune railway station area.

“We have seized the registers of the two lodges. We can’t reveal further at this stage of the investigation,” Deputy Commissioner of Police Namrata Patil said Friday.

Patil said all lodges and hotels in the city will be under the scanner. “We will be verifying whether proper identification proofs are being taken from those who seek a room in the lodge or hotel,” she said. Swargate, Shivajinagar and Pune railway station area have the maximum number of lodges and hotels in the entire Pune city.

In the gangrape case, the police said no identity proof was sought from the minor. “If the lodge employees had found anything suspicious regarding the age of the minor, they should have alerted the police. But in this case they did not alert the police, nor did they seek any identity proof,” Patil said, adding that strong action would be taken against them.

Besides checking registers and identity proofs, the police will also verify whether CCTV cameras have been installed at entry points or reception areas of hotels and lodges.

Police Commissioner Amitabh Gupta said, “We will be taking strong action against hotels and lodges found violating the laid-down norms.”

Since two railways employees have been arrested for the rape of the minor, the police said they would also inform the railways about the steps to be taken to ensure that such incidents do not take place at their premises. The two railways employees had allegedly taken the minor girl to the railway premises. “We are awaiting information from the police to initiate further action,” Railways spokesperson Manoj Jhanvar said.

DCP Patil said, “We will mention the steps for the safety of women and girls to be taken at the station premises in a written note which will be sent to the railways soon.”

Meanwhile, RTO Ajit Shinde said they have started taking action against illegal autorickshaws in the city area. “Yesterday, we conducted a drive in Swargate. The drive will be carried out to weed out all illegal autos across the city,” he said. Of the 14 arrested for gang-rape, most of the accused are autorickshaw drivers. The Maharashtra Rickshaw Panchayat said over 1,000 of the 4,000 autorickshaws in Pune railway station area are illegal, meaning the drivers do not possess licence, badges, permits and even khaki uniforms.

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