Policing personal freedoms, courtesy social sensibilities

What does it mean to live in the world's largest democracy if consenting adults must still justify their private choices?

- Srinath Sridharan and Lloyd Mathias

OYO's new policy requiring "proof of relationship" has turned the simple act of booking a room into a moral interrogation. Is this a glaring symptom of a society shackled by regressive norms? In a country that celebrates love on cinema screens but polices it in reality, OYO's capitulation to so-called "local sensibilities" reflects a troubling endorsement of prejudice disguised as tradition. Whose freedoms are being upheld, and whose are being quietly erased?

In a modern democracy like India, where the rights of consenting adults to engage in relationships are legally recognised, such a move reeks of social conservatism disguised as corporate policy. OYO's justification—that the change aligns with "local sensibilities" and was developed in consultation with law enforcement and civil society groups—raises serious concerns. Whose "sensibilities" are being prioritised? Which "civil society" does this policy seek to appease? By bowing to nebulous external pressures, OYO is effectively outsourcing the moral policing of adult behaviour to individual hotel owners. This sets a dangerous precedent where personal freedoms are subordinated to arbitrary moral policing.