'Young couples faced the wrath of moral policing by saffron outfits like Bajrang Dal, Hindu Mahasabha, Shiv Sena and Hindu Yuva Vahini in different parts of Uttar Pradesh on Valentine's Day on Saturday. While 'love birds' were publicly humiliated and manhandled by the members of the saffron outfit in Lucknow, Kanpur, Jhansi and Bulandshahr, in Gorakhpur police were seen chasing couples from parks and public places. Several activists were arrested and detained on charges of breach of peace.
'Right-wing outfit Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha has claimed that it has scanned Delhi’s electoral rolls to “identify Muslim and Christian men” who they suspect could sway Hindu girls. With Valentine’s Day approaching, it said it has been keeping an eye on them for the past one week. Om Ji, the convener of the outfit who contested against Arvind Kejriwal, said his party has “thoroughly examined” Delhi’s electoral rolls. “We have our own ways. We examined the electoral list to mobilise the Hindu vote during elections. This is a common thing,” he said.
'Hindu nationalist party Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha, which was earlier in the news because the partymen wanted to install the statue of Nathuram Godse in Meerut, is making headlines again. The latest salvo by the right-wing group is aimed at all those who have big romantic plans for Valentine's Day. According to this report in The Times of India, if you are seen with your boy/girlfriend, or have a rose in your hand or are caught in corners hugging each other, you will (wait for it) be married then and there.
'Filmmaker Ashoke Pandit, newly appointed Censor Board member, has sparked controversy with his tweet on Karan Johar and "AIB Knockout". The "AIB Knockout" video, which went viral on Facebook and Twitter, features Karan as the 'Roastmaster', while the actors Ranveer Singh and Arjun Kapoor were grilled by the host and panel of celebrities...
"The district units of the Komu Souharda Vedike and the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) have said that more communal incidents were reported in 2014 in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts than the previous year. Submitting a memorandum to Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner A.B. Ibrahim, they demanded that monthly meetings be held with victims from the minority communities. The office-bearers of the two organisations said in a press release that 2014 witnessed 173 communal incidents in the twin districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi against 121 cases in 2013..."
"In the first of its kind in India, youth in Kochi launched a campaign called ‘Kiss of Love’ to challenge the moral policing of the Hindu Right. While that protest was attacked by right wing thugs and suppressed by the police, this form of protest has since spread to different parts of the country like Hyderabad, Bombay and Calcutta. Today, the ‘Kiss of Love’ protest was held at nowhere short of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) head office in New Delhi.
"To express freedom of love in the wake of attack against a coffee shop in Kozhikode last week by BJP youth wing activists alleging immoral activities, a group youngsters have decided to observe a ‘kiss day’ in port city Kochi on November 2 putting the police in a bind. Though the police have denied official permission to hold a massive kissing drive they said they would intervene if it crosses limit of permissible decency and create a law and order issue.
"On camera, a group of activists carrying BJP flags are seen rushing into a popular coffee shop in Kerala's Kozhikode and smashing its windows and furniture. The police have registered a case against the attackers, who claim to be members of the BJP's youth wing. The shop has been badly damaged in the attack on Thursday evening. The police say it is a case of moral policing; the shop, Downtown, used to stay open till late and was a popular haunt for young men and women, especially students from the Indian Institute of Management and the National Institute of Technology.
'Another politician has blamed girls for rapes. Karnal BJP MLA candidate Manohar Lal Khattar has said that girls must be dressed decently and not 'lure' boys. On a question about Khap panchayats and their rulings, Khattar said that to an extent Khap rulings were justified as they 'tried to abide by the Indian culture'. Khattar, who is also being seen as a possible CM candidate if BJP wins the October 15 Assembly elections in Haryana, said that girls need to be dressed decently so as to 'not attract the opposite sex'.
"A four-time Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator and former state minister from communally sensitive Akola takes pride in calling himself the original campaigner against "Love Jihad". In all seriousness, Govardhan Sharma, 59, says no interaction should be allowed between Hindu girls and Muslim boys; girls should not be allowed the use of mobile phones and should have a stricter dress code. Worse, Hindu women should not be allowed to go grocery shopping. Sharma's efforts have yielded political dividends. Akola is seen as the BJP's safest seat in the district.
