OYO, a hotel booking platform has set forth its new policies, in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh from January 2025. Under this policy, OYO prohibits unmarried couples, or those not legally married, from booking hotel rooms and checking into the establishment. Instead, the couples are required to have ID cards which could state alongside the booking to carry proper proof with them. Combined with social morals, that policy initiates other hotels involved with OYO business to not allow unmarried couples to check-in. Such enforcement differs from their usual procedure where bookings were freely available to everyone until now.
Focused on social growth, strong anti-civil sentiments were raised targeting OYO’s highest authority, putting them in a firm position to reconsider their next move in response to the locals Ever since the policy turned global in Meerut, the company has remained under scrutiny and criticism. Respectfully differing, the government along with civil groups argued why that was such a policy selecting a specific group, and encouraging reservations. While thoughts like the idea of being together is not morally and ethically wrong, the policy, according to advocate Athar Saeer suggested the intent was better for society in safeguarding the plurality of India’s cultural and societal norms.
In contrast, there are individuals Richards who believe that the policy does not comply with the protection of people’s freedoms and individual liberties. Madhav Gupta, a student at the University of Delhi, said that adults should be able to book a room without incurring reproach in any shape way, or form and deems the policy to be an unnecessary limitation.
While OYO’s move to bring in this policy is contentious it demonstrates the willingness of the organization to grapple with the controversy of protecting culture and safeguarding individual rights in the country’s changing society. The company also listens to feedback from people in Meerut and it is then up to the company if they want to institute this policy in the rest of the country.