The Uttar Pradesh government will reactivate anti-Romeo teams, which were introduced with the purported aim of preventing sexual harassment of women, PTI reported on Thursday.

Chief Minister Adityanath asked officials to reactivate the squads in a meeting held on Wednesday in the Ambedkar Nagar district.

“Emphasising the need for an environment free of fear, Adityanath said the safety of women should be a top priority,” the state government said, reported The Hindu. “He ordered the reactivation of the Anti-Romeo Squad team and directed district-level officers to ensure public hearings and communication.”

The statement added: “Additionally, he stressed the importance of the timely and quality resolution of complaints received on the IGRS and Chief Minister Helpline Portal, with complainant satisfaction being a top priority.”

The Adityanath-led BJP government had launched the anti-Romeo squads in 2017 after he was elected as the chief minister for the first time.

The squads, consisting of police personnel, mostly targeted boys found outside girls’ colleges and those allegedly involved in harassing women.

However, it also faced criticism in many cases for harassing couples in consensual relationships.

From March 2017 to December 2020, anti-Romeo squads arrested over 14,454 men. They also took a range of extra-legal actions, including extortion in exchange for release and public shaming rituals such as sit-ups, head-shavings, and blackening faces.

Also read:Anti-Romeo squads, Operation Durga: How the BJP subverts women’s rights while policing the streets