3.4 Mr. R. R. Patil
R R Patil (born August 16, 1958, Anjani Taluka, Tasgaon Zilla, Sangli, Maharashtra, India) is an Indian politician from the state of Maharashtra.
Known as 'Mr Clean' in political circles, R R Patil's career graph from a zilla parishad member to the deputy chief minister's chair in Mumbai has been marked by impressive achievements, astute organisational skills and result-oriented leadership.
Groomed by the Nationalist Congress Party chief, Sharad Pawar, it was Patil's strong organizational skills and result-oriented strategies that paid rich dividends for the party in western Maharashtra. Patil beat strong NCP contenders like Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil, Chhagan Bhujbal, Jayant Patil and Padamsinh Patil to the deputy chief minister's post. Inducted for the first time in the Democratic Front government in 1999 as rural development minister, Patil was assigned the Home ministry in 2003-end after the then deputy chief minister Chhagan Bhujbal resigned in the wake of the Telgi scam disclosures.
Patil, popularly known as 'Aba', is a grassroots politician.
After spending 11 years as zilla parishad member, Patil was
first elected to the legislative assembly in 1990 from Tasgaon
in Sangli district. Patil has since won the seat four times.
Known for his aggressive oratory skills, Patil played an effective
role on the opposition benches during the erstwhile Shiv Sena-Bharatiya
Janata Party rule. Subsequently, he was appointed the chief
of NCP's Maharashtra unit.
It was Patil who spurred village after village to adopt a more
hygienic approach to life by launching the 'Sant Gadge Baba
Sanitation Campaign.' The campaign helped in providing villages
an incentive for maintaining a clean environment. His strong
rural roots helped Patil identify the needs of the villages
and democratise the functioning of Panchayati Raj institutions.
An advocate by profession, Patil has earned the tag of an "efficient minister." Patil's clean image has been endorsed by anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare. Narmada Bachao Andolan leader, Medha Patkar, too has spoken in his support.
3.4.1 Role of Mr. Patil in the Banning of Dance Bars
The dance bars in Mumbai have been in the lime light because of the much-debated ordinance that banned the dance bars in Mumbai. The Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra R.R.Patil passed an order for banning the dance bars in the state except Mumbai on March 31st ,2005 but on 12th April the Maharashtra Government decided to ban the dance bars in Mumbai as well.
The Maharashtra Act ignores that in a country like India, girls have been entertaining people by dancing since ages. Today there are around 1600 dance bars where about 75000-80000 dance girls perform daily and approximately 3 lakh male bar workers. State Home Minister RR Patil warned that bars continuing to employ dancing girls would lose their licences and offenders could be jailed for three years. The government said it would make provisions in the law to make it a non-bailable offence punishable with three years of rigorous imprisonment. The licenses of a permit rooms and food joints that were running dance bars illegally would also be cancelled.
3.4.2 Noble Reason Behind Banning The Dance Bars: Illegal Migration
R R Patil had told the Assembly that many girls employed in Maharashtra’s dance bars were suspected to be from other countries, especially Bangladesh. ‘‘Some 75 per cent of the girls are from other states and many from foreign countries,’’ he alleged. ‘‘STD calls made by them have been traced to Bangladesh.’’ The minister added ‘‘the general impression’’ is that girls migrating from poor countries like Bangladesh and Nepal take dance bar jobs, which offer ‘‘good money’’.
3.4.3 Security of the Women in Mumbai
The other issue being talked about is that of the security of the girls walking on the street as most of the lecherous crowd is pulled by these bars.
3.4.4 Prostitution
These girls can end up as full-time prostitutes. The fear is also that with unemployment is likely to lead these women into the flesh trade and also promote international trafficking.
3.4.5 Human Rights
This is one kind of human slavery being practiced where the women (bar girl) is being abused, tortured and not given her due place. Also on the other hand are the women whose families have got ruined because of these bars. All the women victims of domestic violence, the wives who have no jobs but who are deserted by their husbands after using them for some time, the helpless, illiterate, girls who belong to the lower socio economic strata, belonging to backward areas, coming from the society oppressed by the feudal social structure, who had to leave their home at an early age in search of livelihood, who were cheated on the way, and who out of sheer helplessness landed up in the dangerous places like dance bars in order to entertain the male customer.
3.4.6 Anti-Social Elements
One of the reasons given by the government for the closure of the dance bars is that it is meeting point for the underworld and many deals are finalized over there but even if the dance bars are banned, they can bring their dreadful strategies to reality. As per the Maharashtra government the ban on dance bars is a part of the moral policing done by them under sections 292 and 294 of the IPC(Indian Penal Code) by objecting on the obscene film posters and T.V. shows.
3.4.7 The Issue of Rehabilitation- The Solution
Mr. Patil has raised a new point about rehabilitation, ‘Can we shoulder the responsibility of the rehabilitation of all these girls?’ Traffickers from Bangladesh by fraudulent and coercive means traffic thousands of helpless vulnerable girls and young women to West Bengal and from there sell them to rest of India and through Rajasthan to the gulf countries. A victim woman regardless of her nationality should be treated as a victim and not as an accused or a criminal. Many people find the position – ‘even if girls don’t belong to our country they should not be repatriated to their country against their wish’ - a little unaffordable. Countries which fail to provide two daily meals to its own population are reluctant to take on responsibility to rehabilitate the aliens. Even in the affluent European countries the shelter and assistance offered to an alien victim is conditional to her actively cooperating in investigation and prosecution. Since the state of Maharashtra has a reputation for being a civilized state Mr. R. R. Patil suggested following three things:
- Maharashtra state should take on the responsibility of rehabilitating these girls. The Bangladesh girls from among these may be made capable of economic self reliance and self protection and sent back to Bangladesh;
- Get the Bangladesh government to commit to keep these girls gainfully engaged for a substantial long time; and
- The cost of rescue, post rescue and rehabilitation may be recovered from Bangladesh
It would be important to enter into and execute a bilateral agreement with Bangladesh and for that purpose the intervention of the International Court or United Nations may be sought. This will set a new precedence that is based on justice as well as humanity. The same approach may be adopted with respect to the other states in India. The rehabilitation of girls belonging to the state of Maharashtra is a negligible burden on the state of Maharashtra. We are sure the government will be able to carry that out easily. As usual organizations like Prerana are ever willing to help the government in this work.