Citizens to hold Valentine’s Day programme

Hyderabad: A collective of like-minded people from different walks of life will organise a programme titled Ashudd Desi Romantics at Tank Bund on Valentine’s Day to protest moral policing by the Hindu Right-wingers and also to give out the message of love among people irrespective of caste, class, gender and religion.

“This programme will be organised at Tank Bund at 3 pm. The participants would come with their partners or find random partners at the venue and walk hand-in-hand to protest the moral policing by the Right-wingers,” said Prof. Karthik Bittu, a transgender faculty member of the University of Hyderabad.

Jasveen Jairath, another organiser and participant, said, “The participants will be in costumes and carry props to make their point. There would also be some food and music.”

Greshama Aruna Rai, a human rights lawyer, said, “We are not endorsing the Valentine?s Day, but would spread the message of love and break the pre-conceived  notion that love cannot happen among individuals of same sex, different classes, different castes and religions as well as differently-abled people,”