Should prostitution be legalized? The most debated topic of current times which has attained a wide range of varied views and arguments from the law, the politicians, the sociologists, parents and the youth. Some call it degrading and immoral and some feel it’s a desperate option. Well, prostitution is not confined just to women but also men(called gigolos), but rare and service opulent class women.

Staring from the 1955 the literature of every language has depicted a prostitute as reluctant and sold their body for money out of poverty, desperation or torture from pimps. Be it Sonia Marmeladov of Crime and Punishment by Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky to Chand in DEV. D prostitutes have been potraited as “HOOKER WITH A HEART OF GOLD”. Sonia is a humble and great hearted girl who sacrificed her chastity to support her father’s second family. Russia after the civil war was reduced to unemployment and poverty and most of the times women found themselves in desperate situations. Chand in Dev.D was a collage going girl who got involved in an mms scandal and was abandoned by her family, she practiced prostitution in the nights and went to collage during day.

There  are  reasons  why  paid  sex  is  prosperous.  For  those  who  men  who  dissatisfied  in   their  marital  relationship  and  those  men  who  cannot  meet  their  wives  for  long  time like  the  truck  drivers,  widowers  and  army  men  and  those  men  who  suffer  rejection  in love  find  solace  in  visiting  the  prostitutes.  The  men  used  women  to  relieve  themselves.  This  is  how  the  red  light  areas  came  into  being. They  were  formed  to  provide   entertainment  to  the  British  officials  who  frequently  visited  India  and  after  Independence  they  were  taken  over  by  the  Indians.  The  major  red  light  areas  were the  Sonagachi  in  Kolkatha,  Kamathipura  in  Mumbai  G.B Road  in  New  Delhi, Reshampura  in  Gwalior  and  Budhwar  Peth  in  Pune.

If one ponders on why would anybody sell their body as there are many other ways to earn money again it is the patriarchal society to be blamed. In situations where girls are bread winners of the family they have to offer favors to men to get a job. Each will have their own reasons. It may be because of some bad influence in their childhood through parents or other family members or because of a painful incident prior rape and abandoned by family, trapped by opportunists, hailing from a family that practiced prostitution for generations or due to lack of awareness and education or because they are always sexually active.

India is a heritage rich and a country that believes its culture to be the supreme of all others. Once it was financially rich and prosperous but still the society had murderers, robbers, cruel kings and prostitutes as well. Our culture and history shows the clear evidence that this profession was an ancient one, even before the coming of Christ. Those days young girls were sacrificed to god and were called Devadasis. They were dancers who lived in the temple and sometimes they would dance in the courts of kings and entertained high class society men. People believed that Devadasis had a sexual relation with god and they were not allowed to enter into a real marriage. They were respected and celebrated by all classes, they were accepted by the society. Our culture has a history of men having multiple wives which was diminished as the time extended.

Today the hypocritical attitude of the people of our country made them tag this profession as degrading and immoral. It is not wrong to promote morals but forcing to follow is wrong. Is it not one’s own personal matter to whether follow them or not. What kind of a culture is this country trying to preserve which does not respect women and deprives here of her basic rights in the name of culture

The pre-emblem of our constitution gives equal rights to all and why not the prostitutes be included in it. Infact a tabu should be imposed on that word as no girl would feel good to be called so. It is the fundamental right of a person to do anything with ones own body. They may choose this path also because it is easier for them compared to working in factory under difficult working conditions and cause women labourers don’t get much pay they opt for easier ways of earning money. The so called elites in our country are making serious efforts to preserve morality in the society, I wonder if laws in our country are framed by keeping in mind the prophecies of the bhagavath geeta. In a 21st century world no holy book can still be a rule book of our lives when we know the harsh truth that chastity and sacredness cannot keep our boat sailing in all seasons. In our country the conviction rate is low mainly in women molestation cases. It is not that the people behind framing laws are not aware of the facts but they are too hypocritical to accept it.

The government imposed a law called The Immoral Traffic Prevention Act in 1986 which said that the sex workers should be prosecuted for practicing in a public place or a notified area. Brothel keepers or landlord will be punished for maintaining a brothel. It is said to be legal if practiced in places away from notified areas. So, as such prostitution in India is neither legal nor illegal. Criminalizing the sex workers would only worsen the situation as there would be more crime committed. Pimps and other middlemen would still run the business in undercover state and remote places. Girls from Bangladesh, Nepal and rural India are most vulnerable as they often fall pray to rhetoric talk. Initially they would be promised of jobs and later sold away, tortured and forced into becoming a prostitute.

Legalizing to some extent may help in checking these atrocities. Importantly it will help to check that the age of the girls who enter into this line is not below 14 and against their will, it helps to check human trafficking. It enables them to access to medical care in order prevent the spreading of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) by registering with the government. They will insist their clients to use contraceptive protection and otherwise take action against them.

Legalizing and recognizing the sex industry as any other industry will give them some dignity and respect. Mainly they could be relieved of harassment from police and middlemen such as pimps or babus. The clients of the prostitutes are key targets to buglers and robbers on the streets of those areas as the victims cannot report the police of the crime as they will have to admit of being involved in patronizing a sex worker. Legalizing prostitution would cause people leave their hesitations behind.

It would render them the basic workers rights. It gives them the prerogative to leave the profession whenever they wish. Children of prostitutes can be protected from ill-treatment and rejection by giving them special privileges.

The major advantage of legalizing it as an industry is that it adds to the tax collection of the government and controlling black money. The revenue incurred from the sex industry may help in financing the fiscal deficit.

There are countries which have been able to successfully regulate prostitution through legalization. The countries where prostitution is legal are Canada, most of Europe including England, France, Whales, Denmark, most of South America including most Mexico, Brazil, Isreal, Australia and many other countries. Each have their own rules and laws.

As every coin has two sides every argument has a ready counter argument. Registering with the government means that regulation by the administration leads to assigning them a license to practice and encourage more men and women to take is as a profession. How would it sound if a little girl says “I will become a call girl when I grow up?”.

As long as there are politicians and businessmen who patronize prostitutes it would become a means of earning a fast buck for girls. They would enter into the profession just out of desperation of becoming rich and attaining a certain lifestyle. There are already an existing sector of this type of impoverished women like the ‘call girls’ and ‘escorts’. Why will the government try to protect such deliberate women?

As far as taxation is concerned on what basis of calculation will the tax be imposed on them?. Will people pay a prostitute on credit and debit cards and will they not mind if their account details show up.

Who says legalization would stop the spreading of disease? It may in turn result to adding to the problem by spreading more widely as a person who does not use protection will not use it even after being tested positive.

Earlier when there were gurukuls and the guru was worshiped as god the human body was considered in three stages and the youth followed this priority status as first comes the head, which means knowledge next comes the stomach which means hunger and last come the sex organs, which means lust. But the youth of the 21st century follow just the reverse of this. They call it sex life. This generation lacks stability to such an extent that they cannot control some dangerous urges inside their body and instead look for means to accomplish them. The fast world where nothing seems impossible to meet has killed ethics and morals.

No culture of any country is not totally good or totally bad. If there were anything of such kind then the world would be a utopia. It is fictitious to say that all the human beings on the earth adopt a lifestyle such as aiming for ultimate happiness of everyone and there is no crime, no discrimination, no classes, no fanatics and extremists and a heavenly environment where all are just, honest, righteous, helpful. Life would be easy and tasteless in such an environment where there is nothing to demand, no cause to fight and nobody to throw on sidelines. Infact the world in which all of us are leading dissatisfied lives is the best one in its own way.

It’s difficult to totally eliminate prostitution as we can see that will never end. Keeping mind all those who are already into this profession for years and want to come out of it the government should legalize it. It would mainly help their children to lead a dignified life unlike them and equal with others. The youth should be given sex education and create awareness by talking openly about sex by conduction workshops and awareness programs. The sex workers should be educated and enlightened so that they don’t force their future generations into this just for the sake of a heavy earning. They should realize that nobody who secures a professional degree would ever agree to become a sex worker when there are end number of dignified ways of earning money.