High Court not interested in banning Kiss of Love

KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Friday declined to proceed further on a petition seeking a ban on the Kiss of Love protest planned by a group of activists in Kochi on November 2 as the state had submitted that the authorities concerned have not granted permission for the conduct of such a protest. The court had taken the decision after expressing satisfaction over measures taken by the government to handle the situation.   
The state had submitted that the authorities concerned has not given permission for the Kiss of Love protest planned at Marine Drive in Kochi on Sunday. It had also submitted that police are prepared to take action in case of any violation of rules. The state had submitted that more police force will be deployed in Marine Drive to maintain the law and order on Sunday.
Sri Sathya Sai Orphanage Trust, Thiruvananthapuram has filed a pettion in the HC seeking a directive to ban the protest stating that it violated various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and Kerala Police Act. The Trust had submitted that the protest amounts to a war against Indian culture and values. The petitioner sought the intervention of the HC for directing the police and district administration in Ernakulam to ban the protest.
A group of students belonging to the pro-congress Kerala Students Union took out a silent march in Kochi on Friday protesting against the Kiss of Love. The protestors displayed placards saying that “women are not a commodity”.
The supporters of the protest meanwhile had claimed overwhelming response to the programme and said that their facebook page had received more than 30,000 likes.
The facebook page in the name of Kesari, a pro-Hindutva outfit, had meanwhile launched ‘I Love Cleaning My Nation’ campaign to be held on the same day at Marine Drive in the city. In a posting it had exhorted the participants and those opposing them to join together for cleaning the city of Kochi facing a serious issue of waste dumps.