Moral police has no space in public life

Young couples have voiced their distaste for the reckless attacks on those celebrating Valentine’s Day, forcing the majority of the moral police to keep away from the celebrations this year

Valentine's Day, till last year, was synonymous with overly crowded eating joints, advance sell-outs at multiplexes, red rose-overloads at florists and of course saffron hooliganism. This year, though, saffron mobsters appear to have kept away. These self-proclaimed 'nationalists' who, armed with sindoor packs, patrolled dating hotspots, vandalised gift shops and thrashed cuddly teddy bears, have taken a break. And it looks like they will be off for quite some time.

All seems to be quiet on the saffron front this year. There have been no public threats to youngsters, no volunteer armies have been assigned to beat up the lovebirds and one hasn't seen any militant posters claiming to protect Indian culture. Rather, there seems to be an air of acceptance of the inevitable. The Shiv Sena, Bajrang Dal, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) have publicly declared that they would not disrupt Valentine's Day.

Om Dutt Sharma, Shiv Sena spokesperson, said in a statement, "There is no point in holding protests and demonstrations as we cannot stop people from celebrating. So this year we will not hold protests of this kind."

Bajrang Dal state convenor in Delhi, Shailendra Jaiswal, echoed the sentiments of the Asom Sena and Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chatra Parishad to celebrate the occasion responsibly, without behaving 'immorally' in public.

The Orissa Bajrang Dal wing has chosen to use 'non-violent' means to preserve the dignity of Indian culture. This time it says that its members will record instances of public display of affection and upload these on YouTube. The usual terror tactics are absent.

But what has happened to the most impassioned 'defender of Indian culture', who even instigated the beating up of women in pubs, to remind them of their position in society?

Pramod Muthalik and his Ram Sene seem to have been wiped out from public memory. Of course, the BJP government in Karnataka is in enough trouble, and it is impossible for him to go out on a campaign of militant nationalism. Mr Muthalik will probably not forget Valentine's Day, because it was on 14 Februrary 2009 that some youngsters publicly blackened his face.

Despite all of this and a ban order from a Mangalore court, Mr Muthalik was unrepentant. Then came the hugely popular 'pink chaddi' campaign, which reduced him to a laughing stock and marked an effective public dismissal.

Two years ago, Valentine's Day was turned into a day of national protest by women who felt enough was enough, after the vandalism by the Ram Sene at the Mangalore pub. Four women decided to present Mr Muthalik with the perfect gift they thought he deserved: pink underwear. Word spread through newspapers and TV, Facebook and Twitter were abuzz with the campaign, and posters came up on several college campuses. Collection booths were set up everywhere, and contributions came through the day. On the Day, several boxes full of pink underwear were delivered to Mr Muthalik and his cohorts, which was followed by an embarrassed silence from the Sene camp.

Mr Muthalik made a feeble attempt at a comeback last year, declaring that he would send bangles to all those women who had participated in the 'pink chaddi' campaign. But both the media and the public dismissed him, and Mr Muthalik vanished from public memory. The ladies, it seems, had the last laugh.

The saffron silence about Valentine's Day is understandable. The parties have finally understood that antagonising young people will cost them very dearly. According to a news wire report, since the entry of Aditya Thackeray, the grandson of Balasahed Thackeray, the party top brass has chosen to play the employment card to attract youth. Besides, fresh elections to the civic body in Mumbai are fast approaching.

Also, the Shiv Sena's flopped campaign against the blockbuster My Name Is Khan could have sounded the warning. The public, particularly youngsters, put their foot down and marched to the theatres in huge numbers in a clear display of support for Shahrukh Khan, whom the Shiv Sena had labelled a 'Pakistani' and a traitor.

These instances have possibly been eye-openers for the moral police with the youth announcing loudly that they are no longer in the mood to take such behaviour lying down. Let's spread the love.