But what is a chowkidar? How the word come about?

The word chowkidar is derived from the Urdu word chauki, which essentially means one of the four outposts on the periphery of a village that guard it from intruders and dacoits.

The Urdu word cauk’ (outpost) and dar’ (keeper) together make up the word chowkidar, which has even made it to the Oxford dictionary.

In the past, chowkidars were those who sat at the chaukis on the four corners of a village and guarded them all night. Today, chowkidars may have vanished from the metros across India, they are still a part of the rural law and order mechanism.

Chowkidars have now come into the fold of the rural policing system, in which the police stations appoint them to watch over small villages. They are often the first responders in case of an emergency or a crime.

After PM Modi changed his name on Twitter to add the prefix Chowkidar’, the word has now taken on a political meaning.