Events & Personalities
Behen, beti bachao
Parsis wishing to prevent interfaith marriages, euphemistically referred to as "love jihad,” may take a clue from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). According to an article in The Indian Express (IE) of September 14, 2014 the Hindu right wing group has a division named Hindu Behen Beti Bachao Sangharsh Samiti (committee to save Hindu sisters and daughters).
Upon receiving tip offs about an impending "love jihad” where a Hindu is marrying a non-Hindu and is being supposedly pressured/coerced into converting to the non-Hindu’s religion, the group visit the family. "People are told to approach (us) immediately if they suspect Muslim youths of ‘luring their daughters,’” states Ajay Tyagi whose farmhouse near Meerut serves as the ‘headquarters’ of the western Uttar Pradesh (UP) unit. Under the guise of stopping conversion the Samiti can also deter interfaith couples from marrying.
The Samiti was due to make a trip to Rataur village in Baghpat district of UP where communal tension prevailed following an alleged bid to convert a Dalit youth who was involved with a Muslim girl. The youth, according to the "locals” was not willing to convert, but didn’t want to give up the girl. "This is the first case for us as normally we get calls from fathers of girls,” they state.
Lord Meghnad Desai in his column "Out of my mind” in the Sunday Indian Express of September 11, 2014, refers to the "Blatant anti-Muslim sentiments such as ‘love jihad.’ Obviously the objects of protection are ‘our girls’ seduced by ‘those horrible’ Muslim boys and converted.” A news item in the same newspaper refers to a Muslim youth in Jabalpur who was beaten up by a militant Hindu group on the complaint of a Hindu woman who said he wanted her to convert and marry him.
In Indore and Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh the local administration had "instructed garba organizers to ensure men are allowed only after checking their photo ID cards” to stop entry of "unauthorized participants,” stated IE of September 20, 2014.
A day earlier a Bharatiya Janata Party member of the legislative assembly instructed that "Muslim men shall not be allowed to enter garba venues and their identity cards be checked.”
Will Parsis who vehemently oppose interfaith marriages take a leaf from their fundamentalist Hindu brethren? Anyone for a Parsi Bachao Samiti (BS)?
Upon receiving tip offs about an impending "love jihad” where a Hindu is marrying a non-Hindu and is being supposedly pressured/coerced into converting to the non-Hindu’s religion, the group visit the family. "People are told to approach (us) immediately if they suspect Muslim youths of ‘luring their daughters,’” states Ajay Tyagi whose farmhouse near Meerut serves as the ‘headquarters’ of the western Uttar Pradesh (UP) unit. Under the guise of stopping conversion the Samiti can also deter interfaith couples from marrying.
The Samiti was due to make a trip to Rataur village in Baghpat district of UP where communal tension prevailed following an alleged bid to convert a Dalit youth who was involved with a Muslim girl. The youth, according to the "locals” was not willing to convert, but didn’t want to give up the girl. "This is the first case for us as normally we get calls from fathers of girls,” they state.
Lord Meghnad Desai in his column "Out of my mind” in the Sunday Indian Express of September 11, 2014, refers to the "Blatant anti-Muslim sentiments such as ‘love jihad.’ Obviously the objects of protection are ‘our girls’ seduced by ‘those horrible’ Muslim boys and converted.” A news item in the same newspaper refers to a Muslim youth in Jabalpur who was beaten up by a militant Hindu group on the complaint of a Hindu woman who said he wanted her to convert and marry him.
In Indore and Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh the local administration had "instructed garba organizers to ensure men are allowed only after checking their photo ID cards” to stop entry of "unauthorized participants,” stated IE of September 20, 2014.
A day earlier a Bharatiya Janata Party member of the legislative assembly instructed that "Muslim men shall not be allowed to enter garba venues and their identity cards be checked.”
Will Parsis who vehemently oppose interfaith marriages take a leaf from their fundamentalist Hindu brethren? Anyone for a Parsi Bachao Samiti (BS)?
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