S*x work in Shillong: Are police raids only scratching the surface?

Added: 2026-05-11

[00:00:00]In the last two months, Shillong has witnessed repeated police crackdowns on commercial sex workers operating in public spaces across the city from Khindila to IGP Point. Police teams carried out late-night raids, detained several women, and registered cases under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act and the Meghalaya Police Act. The official reason was clear: police said they had received complaints from citizens and local stakeholders alleging that prostitution was taking place near churches, public institutions, and busy commercial areas, causing public discomfort and raising concerns over rising HIV cases in Meghalaya. But beneath these rates lie a much larger and more complicated conversation. The operations are actually dismantling organized trafficking networks and are mainly targeting the most visible and vulnerable people in the system. Public anxiety over HIV is leading to commercial sex workers being treated unfairly. Blamed for a much deeper public health crisis, and in a city where morality, public order, women's rights, and public health often overlap, there's exactly the line between policing crime and policing visibility. In this video, we look at some of the difficult questions. Shillong is now being forced to confront. But before we continue, a small request. Please support independent journalism by becoming a member of East Mojo. The process is simple. Visit our website and choose the plan that suits you best. Your support helps us do more ground reports and bring important public concerns to the forefront. You can find the link here and in the description below. Now back to the story. For several years now there have been discussions in Shillong about the visible presence of commercial sex workers in areas such as Khandaiala also known as Police Bazaar, IGP Point and near by commercial locations. This issue is not new. More than a decade ago, local columns and opinion pieces had already begun discussing Shillong's changing social realities. Including trafficking, drug abuse, informal prostitution networks and the vulnerability of women who entered the trade because of economic pressure.

[00:02:37]Veteran journalist But Mukhim had also written about how law enforcement often focused on women picked up during raids while organised networks and establishments enabling the trade escape deep scrutiny. But in recent months, public concerns have intensified.

[00:02:58]Residents and local stakeholders have reportedly complained that commercial sex workers were openly soliciting clients near churches, educational institutions, and also places like crowded commercial zones. This concern has also emerged at a time when Meghalaya is witnessing a rise in HIV cases. As of December 2025, Meghalaya had over 10,000 people living with HIV/AIDS while the state's prevalence rate remained higher than the national average. And as public concern over HIV has grown, discussions around commercial sex work have increasingly become part of that conversation. But this is also where the debate becomes more complicated. Because while sex work is often publicly associated with HIV transmission, public health experts have repeatedly pointed out that the HIV patterns are far more complex than popular assumptions. Suggest several northeastern states, including Assam and Mizoram, have reported major links between HIV's spread and injecting drug use, particularly among younger populations sharing contaminated needles.

[00:04:15]And in Meghalaya, there are concerns that public discourse sometimes places disproportionate blame on sex workers. While larger structural issues such as unsafe drug use, stigma for awareness, and limited access to health care receive far less attention, the attention between public fear and public health has now shaped the police response. On March 28, 2026, East Khasi Hills police conducted one of its most visible vigilance raids in Shillong city.

[00:04:50]According to the Superintendent of Police, the operation was launched after complaints were received regarding prostitution- related activities near important public and religious spaces.

[00:05:03]The raid covered several locations stretching from Kandai near Pegasus Hotel Junior Presbyterian English Service Church opposite SBI main branch along with areas near the Ambose office in Lakshmimam and IGP Point. The operation was led by Additional SP I Windingor along with officers from Women Police Station, Sardar Police Station and Lapra Police Station. During the raid, 16 persons were apprehended for allegedly engaging in prostitution-related activities.

[00:05:34]Police stated that four among them were identified as pills and agents accused of facilitating prostitution. A case was subsequently registered under sections 457 and 78 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act along with section 110 of the Meghalaya Police Act. Less than two weeks later on April 11th, another late night vice raid was conducted under the supervision of Additional SP Traffic Lovesh Garg and other officers covering Police Bazaar, the Presbyterian Church area, IGP Point and nearby locations. Police said sex workers who were illegally illiciting clients in public spaces by approaching nearby and attempting to attract customers there by causing disturbance and public discontent.

[00:06:22]Again 16 women were detained and booked under Section 110 of the Meghalaya Police Act. The police maintain that they are responding to public complaints and also trying to maintain order in crowded urban spaces, but critics and riot groups continue to raise important questions. Do Vice Raids Actually Dismantle Organized Trafficking Networks? And today temporarily remove visible women from public spaces while larger networks continue to operate in the background. That debate has raged on anti-prostitution policing across India for years because under Indian law, prostitution itself exists in a legal grey area. Selling sexual services privately is not technically illegal, but such activity as silencing in public places. Operating brothels, pimping, and trafficking are criminal offenses under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, and that legal entitlement of offenders leaves commercial sex workers themselves in the most vulnerable position during enforcement actions.

[00:07:37]The issue of commercial sex work in Shillong has repeatedly entered political discussions over the years. One of the most talked about moments came during an earlier discussion in the Meghalaya Assembly when legislators had raised questions about their Khandai Lord.

[00:07:51]It had effectively become a pick-up point for sex workers. At the time, former minister and current NPP MLA Amreen Lyngdor strongly reacted to the manner in which the discussion was being treated inside the House, objecting to members laughing about an issue involving vulnerable women and social distress. Years later, the debate has resurfaced again, this time linked to HIV concerns. In a recent interview, MLA Amreen Lyngdor argued that Meghalaya requires a balanced and multi-prompted strategy to address rising HIV cases while also protecting the dignity and rights of vulnerable groups, including commercial sex workers. That distinction is because discussions around sex work in Shillong often move between two very different frameworks. One sees the issue mainly through morality, public nuisance and law enforcement.

[00:09:01]The Other Views Through Public Health, Economic Vulnerability, and Human Rights. And depending on which framework dominates the conversation, the response changes completely.

[00:09:14]Mukhim had also repeatedly written about how vulnerable women are often treated as offenders. Instead of individuals trapped within larger systems involving trafficking, poverty, exploitation and social neglect. At the same time, many residents genuinely argue that public solicitation in crowded areas affects the atmosphere of Shillong's main commercial zones and creates discomfort for families, pedestrians and near religious institutions.

[00:09:51]So this debate is not simply between right and wrong. It is between public order, morality, public health and human dignity, all colliding in the same public space. The deeper question now is whether Shillong is confronting not only a prostitution problem but also a broader social and public health crisis becoming increasingly visible in urban spaces because commercial sex work rarely exists in isolation. Across many Indian cities, studies and ground reports show links between sex work, drug dependency, trafficking, homelessness, economic distress, and migration. And in the North East, the HIV conversation itself has long been linked not only to sexual transmission but also to injecting drug use. This Matters Because Once Public Discourse Simplifies the Issue Among Sex Workers Spreading HIV The Conversation Risk Ignoring Other Critical Drivers Such as Unsafe Injecting Practices Lack of Rehabilitation Systems Stigma Around Testing and Poor Public Awareness Experts Repeatedly Verify That Stigma Itself Can Worsen Public Health Outcomes When Vulnerable Groups Fear Police Action, Humiliation, and Public Exposure They Are Less Likely to Access Health Care, HIV Testing, and Support Systems That Does Not Mean Concerns Resolved by Residence Should Be Dismissed. Public spaces matter, law enforcement matters, trafficking and exploitation are rail crimes.

[00:11:44]But if the response focuses only on periodic crackdowns without addressing rehabilitation, health care access, addiction support, trafficking networks, and economic vulnerability, the underlying issues rarely disappear. It simply becomes less visible for some time before returning again. And perhaps that is why this issue keeps resurfacing in Shillong year after year because beneath it the moral debate lies a more uncomfortable reality.

[00:12:20]The women seen during rates are often only the most visible part of a much larger system involving poverty, addiction, exploitation, demand, and institutional gaps [nasal sound] and yet those deeper layers are addressed together.

[00:12:39]The city may continue moving in circles between outreach rates, headlines, and silence. What is your take on the issue? Do let us know in the comments. And if you like our work please do support us by becoming a member of East Mojo. Remember, your support will help keep independent journalism alive.

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