Kiss 'n' yell

ALLEN O'BRIEN / TNN / Oct 2, 2005, 20:42 IST

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Recently, a just-married Israeli couple was fined for 'indecency' . We analyse this 'no show of intimacy please, we're Indian' mindset...

Recently, a just-married Israeli couple was fined for 'indecency' because the groom dared to kiss the bride in public. We analyse this 'no show of intimacy please, we're Indian' mindset...
When Alon Orpaz and Tehila Salev, an Israeli couple, hugged and kissed after getting married in a traditional Hindu ceremony in Pushkar, little did they know that the priests would be offended by their 'act of indecency' and a court in Rajasthan would impose a $22 fine for their wedding embrace.
Alon and Tehila -- "not aware that kissing in public is illegal in India" -- paid the fine to avoid a 10-day jail sentence and tendered a public apology for their misdemeanour. This in the land of the Kamasutra.
For all the talk of the Indian mindset increasingly becoming liberal, the priests at the couple's wedding complain that their "sentiments were hurt." According to SN Garg, president of the Priests and Pilgrimage Society: "We want the government to ensure that tourists respect Indian culture."

Adds Ladoo Ram Sharma, president of the Shree Teerth Gurupurohit Sangh Trust, "The government should ask tourists to dress appropriately while visiting holy places and temples.
To begin with, we will distribute pamphlets in hotels requesting visitors from abroad to refrain from hurting Indian sentiments. We will not tolerate pollution of our culture."
Incredible India?
While some might see an open display of affection by foreign tourists as 'pollution of Indian culture', international visitors like Mauritzio Libero from Italy believe in 'strong forms of physical expression'. "We see no harm in hugging, holding hands and kissing in public places as long as it is a mutual act between the two involved," says Mauritzio.

This conflict between 'Indian ideology' and 'Western attitudes, says Alon, could lead to a dip in the flow of international tourists to India. "Our embrace in public was in accordance with our culture and not intended to hurt anyone," says Tehila.
Now, analyse this:
* Pushkar: Alon's act of kissing his bride Tehila is an 'indecent activity in public' which, according to the IPC, calls for upto three months' imprisonment or a fine or both. "The couple has admitted to the act and paid the fine," informs their counsel Pratap Kumar.
* New Delhi: Walk into Lodhi Gardens or any public park in the afternoon, and you will find college-going and unmarried couples holding hands, walking with their arms around each other's waist. If there is a cop around, the couples concerned could be hauled up for 'indecency'.
Big Q: Is a public show of intimacy by a couple illegal?
According to Section 91 of the Delhi Police Act, "behaving indecently in public is punishable." What is debatable is the definition of 'indecent'. Going by Black's Law Dictionary, "indecency refers to something offensive to common propriety." Asks 19-year-old Neha Juneja of JMC: "Is holding hands offensive to common propriety?"
Besides, the interpretation of indecency, as Supreme Court lawyer Amit Khemka says, has a lot to do with the chargesheet drawn up by the cops. "From the chargesheet, it might appear that the act is something more than just holding hands."
For the record, a couple caught holding hands in a park stands to be imprisoned for eight days unless, of course, Rs 100 is paid as a fine. The ridiculousness of this is highlighted by call centre exec Lalit Varma: "Paying Rs 100 makes the indecent act of holding hands decent!"

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