Is Kissing A Crime?

This happened around a month and a half ago. A TV Channel -Jaihind- belonging to a political party, ran a news report showing footage of couples engaged in ‘immoral’ activities. The footage was nothing but that of a couple kissing in the cafe. The news also mentioned that the cafe was the ground for other illegal activities such as drugs. But there was nothing to substantiate its claims apart from the same footage of kissing couples being replayed.

Following this news, the youth wing of another political party, vandalized the cafe in the name of moral policing. They destroyed much of the cafe’s property saying that they were forced to react in response to such ‘immoral activities’. You can read more about it Here.

The next thing that happened was the Kiss Of Love (KOL) movement in Marine Drive, Cochin. A group announced that KOL movement would happen on Nov 2nd protesting against the moral policing drama at the cafe in Calicut. Facebook flooded with opinions, about how it was wrong and how it wasn’t wrong. On the said day, all the political parties and activists were present at Marine drive to flog anyone who dared to kiss in public. They outnumbered the KOL participants who were only about 50. Even before the protest began, they were taken to the police station. The arrest did not dampen their spirits. They continued their protest.

Today, there was another KOL in Calicut. I just read their press release from their Facebook page and it painted a very sad picture. Similar to the earlier protest, Hanuman sena, Shiv sena and the police joined hands, tore clothes, abused and beat up the activists. Anyone found kissing, holding hands or even passing by, were taken into custody as per this report.

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Really? Making a big scene out of people kissing and demolishing a cafe in its name!?

• When questioned, the moral policing supporters say PDA is against Indian culture. But these pillars of Indian culture struck unarmed lovers for their act of love. How ironic!

May I ask?
How many women are raped on a daily basis?
How many little children are violated, shredded and thrown by the vultures in our country?
How many politicians are corrupt?
How many poor are rendered homeless in the name of industrialization?
How many cases of murders do you hear on a daily basis?
How many children are used for prostitution?
And how many for child labour?

If kissing in public is against Indian culture, are the above our culture? If not, where are the activists when any of the above happen? When the accused is caught, why don’t they just go to him and thrust a knife at his heart? People’s priorities give me the chills. An act of love is considered more dangerous than an act of lust!

The protesters kiss with mutual consent while rape is a forceful act. Yet, people choose to butcher the former & ignore the latter.

• They said, “Bring your mothers and sisters too when you come for kiss of love. Well, you wont. That is what we are trying to say. It is wrong for our women to do all this.”

May I ask?
Are your women incapable of taking their own decisions?
Aren’t they individuals who have the right to decide whether or not to participate?
If you’re doing all the thinking for them, why don’t you do the same for your father and brothers too?
Certain parts of your body differs from that of women. But the brain does not differ. Women can think for themselves as much as you can.

• They ask, “What will our future generation learn?”

May I ask?
Our future generations need not wait in streets or cafe to watch couples kiss. You have given them everything to trigger their lust and learn things. Have you given them cell phones, television, internet? Are you sending them to schools and colleges? Influences can come from anywhere. A kissing couple wouldn’t be their first ‘bad influence’ I’m sure.

To those parents who are concerned, I totally understand you. I’d feel protective about my children too. All I’m saying is that, if they want to, they will go after such temptations. Nothing can stop them.

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Image courtesy: Imagesbuddy.com

I believe, no one has the right to prohibit anyone from kissing publicly. But No! I won’t participate in it. Seems ironic. Doesn’t it? Like many of you, I have been seasoned in such a manner that kissing in public makes me uncomfortable. Watching others do it ‘might’ make me uncomfortable too. I don’t know. But I’d just ignore them because I believe one has the right to express their love. What I don’t get is, why do people resort to violence when they see such acts? Are their instincts so damn animalistic that they can’t stand to watch a couple kiss before their eyes?

Imagine, we had no bodies, no gender bias, no rules, no moral policing. We are just the souls. You love another soul and that soul loves you in return. Now tell me, will you kiss your love in front of other souls?
A sensible person would say ‘Yes.’ If so, what is making you protest now? Your body, gender, rules, jealousy or ‘moral policing attitude’?

One thing I understand is that, majority of our population have been tamed to shun and despise PDA. We can’t blame them for it. Open mindedness or the will to view things with a different eye is a rare quality. Not everyone is born with it. When you have it, put yourself in the older generation’s position. After living in a conservative society, it would not be easy for them to accept such protests. There is some right on their part too.

As for those moral police who are merely jealous, I pity you!

The icing on the cake: all the religious heads and political parties in Kerala united in this name. They all fought together on one side, for the same cause. Sadly, the cause was to refrain people from kissing in public.

The bottom line is, there are many more important things you have to stop before you stop people kissing in public. There is so much of violence, people’re dying and rotting away. If you are turning a blind eye on them & stopping people from showing some love, you’re surely doing it wrong.

I wish the politicians had half this zest in serving justice to the innocents.

I wish people were asked not to piss in public rather than not to kiss on public.

Image courtesy: Imagesbuddy.com