Hindu radical outfit protests against Valentine's Day in Jammu and Kashmir

[Joanne98]

Source: sify.com


Activists of Shri Ram Sena, a radical Hindu outfit, on Saturday protested against the upcoming Valentine's Day in Jammu and Kashmir.

The activists shouted anti-Valentine's Day slogans, and burnt greeting cards during the protest.

Rajeev Gupta, a local functionary of the organisation, told mediapersons that they would observe February 14 as a black day across the country.

"Last year also Shri Ram Sena had pledged that we will not allow any celebration of Valentine's Day in Jammu. Shri Ram Sena has decided to celebrate this day as black day in the entire country. All the activists in the country have pledged to do so," Gupta said.

"I am making an appeal to all the parents to keep their children at home; we will not tolerate any kind of vulgarity in Jammu," he added.

He warned that "vulgarity" would not be tolerated, and called for couples to refrain from any kind of celebration on Valentine's Day.



Read more: http://www.sify.com/news/hindu-radical-outfit-protests-against-valentine-s-day-in-jammu-and-kashmir-news-national-lcmu4kcgbhe.html

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Fundies are the same everywhere.

[DCKit]

1. It's a war on VD!!!!

Gotta wonder when the TaliBaptists are gonna pick up on this one.

[FLPanhandle]

2. No one is forcing them to celebrate it

Why the fuck can't all these groups just live their own lives? I'm sick of anti-gay marriage, anti-Valentines day, anti-abortionists, etc. You don't like something, fine...don't do it and shut the fuck up, you have no right to tell others what they should or shouldn't be doing.

[JI7]

8. he probably doesn't have anyone to celebrate it with

[La Lioness Priyanka]

3. lol

[Moonwalk]

4. No way they can win out against Valentine's Day--Not given V-Day's secret weapon.....

:evilgrin: Chocolate! :evilgrin:

[WatsonT]

5. They could have just admitted to forgetting to make dinner reservations

for their wives. This seems like a bit of overkill to avoid an angry misses.

[BOG PERSON]

6. hinduism has so much going for it

take away the wacky "radical" elements that want to ban valentine's day and you're still left with the caste system, arranged marriages, "karma" and so on...

[FLPanhandle]

7. They're probably Hindus that can't get a girlfriend and are pissed off

The rest are going to enjoy it and have some fun later.

[Judi Lynn]

9. No courting in public, Hindu group warns Delhi

No courting in public, Hindu group warns Delhi
By Kunal Dutta
Sunday, 13 February 2011

Lovers in Delhi could find their date plagued by a sense of unease tomorrow, after Hindu extremists threatened to film covertly and upload footage of unmarried couples seen kissing in public.

Activists belonging to a group called Sri Ram Sena issued the warning ahead of Valentine's Day, which it views as a direct threat to traditional Indian values and a catalyst for sexual misdemeanour. Instead, the group says, young unmarried couples should mark the traditional Hindu festival of Basant Panchami, get themselves married, or simply stay indoors.

"We won't allow our culture to be hijacked by foreign multinationals who have introduced concepts like Valentine's Day just to sell cards," said its spokesman, Sunil Tyagi. The group plans to equip its members with cameras to film couples in action. "When we upload such footage on YouTube, the couples will learn their mistake."

The threats are likely to be greeted with scepticism. Valentine's Day, which is still in its infancy, has grown in stature among India's burgeoning young consumer society. Yet it polarises opinion. In Chennai, some hotels refuse to advertise Valentine's Day packages so as not to attract attention from Hindu extremists.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/no-courting-in-public-hindu-group-warns-delhi-2213130.html

[AsahinaKimi]

10. I guess Hate can be stronger then Love in some cases...

kind of sad really.

[VermeerLives]

11. Valentines Day will probably be banned in Saudi Arabia, too

Last year, as I recall, they banned the color red. I guess there's no romance in the desert?

[4saken]

12. Traditionalists like this tend to...

...react based on a fear of change, in this case, in the guise of moral superiority. Vulgarity? What an excuse for imposing their views. Showing little desire for objectivity on the matter, they find their particular traditions sacred and other practices of far less value. Society changes, people change, and in turn so do the practices they see fit. Maybe they even apply some reasoning to their process of conviction, rather than accepting things as true or good based on them being traditional.

Sharma, the leader of their group http://www.suite101.com/content/valentines-day-india-a195582">said, "To flirt and have fun outside and without marriage is against our culture."
He also says "there was no space for individuals in the Indian society."
More divisive cultural norms. I can certainly see why people would reject them.

Sharma also claims that "Valentine's Day was responsible for impregnation of many unmarried girls in the country."
As suggested by this http://www.popcouncil.org/pdfs/wp/seasia/seawp17.pdf">Indian family planning evidence overview "NFHS–2 reports that 16 per cent of currently married women have
an unmet contraceptive need" And that appears to only be referring to married women. Suggesting an unmet need for contraception in India. That sounds like it has a much more causal factor than Valentines day.

This group makes me want to read some Hindu scriptures, to learn to what degree they are influencing their society in these regards.