NEW DELHI: Love knows no boundaries. Well, not in this city anyway. Everyone, from trader leaders to fringe political parties, seems to have adopted the current symbol of love St Valentine.
On one hand, you have lathi-wielding moralists from Bajrang Dal professing their love for St Valentine by insisting on defining the scope of love (and otherwise).
At the other end of the spectrum are activists from Indian Justice Party who are also willing to define the emotion with the help of chappals and bangles. Add to this the NGOs which plan to take out processions at Delhi's favourite protest ground India Gate.
Aspiring politicians are not to be left behind either. Praveen Khandelwal, the erstwhile voice of traders and an aspiring local politician, has decided to take out a procession to showcase his love for the motherland on February 14. The padyatra, from Red Fort to Ghanta Ghar, is only one of several processions lined up for V-Day. Sarika Chaudhary of IJP says her procession at Jantar Mantar will be to "blunt'' any effort by parties like Sri Ram Sene or Bajrang Dal to disrupt the "happiness of loving couples. After all, it's an independent country and no one has the right to terrorise women,'' adds a pious Chaudhary.
Meanwhile, Real Cause, an NGO, took out a procession at India Gate to celebrate harmony amongst the youth. "There shouldn't be an attempt to cling on to stereotypes propagated by communal groups,'' adds Zaheer Ahmed Saifi of Real Cause.