Fine Lines of Obscenity and Expression

Valntine's Day celebrations were carried out in the whole country today. Couples, both young and old, utilized this opportunity to express their love for each other and reaffirm their relationships. Unfortunately, this day of love had to confront obstacles like Moral Policing and in some instances violence.

Orthodox Hindu Groups have an agenda of ensuring that Valentine's day celebrations are not carried out. The threats this time were very serious and blunt, and in some places these groups did indulge in violence to disrupt this celebration. Their claims for disrupting this festival is that it undermies Indian Culture and its values. The influence of this Western Culture will elad to moral decadence, if these orthodox groups are to be believed. In some places in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, these groups have resorted to violence and have attacked some restaurants. Rumour has it that one young person is apparently in Hospital in Delhi resulting from the fracas by these groups during Valentine's Day.

These threats and violence have been constant for quiet some time now, and hence expressions of love and affection have to be confined and not expressed in public. The very freedom of expression is being upheld by a bunch of thugs, and it seems that the authorities are powerless to do anything about it. Under the guise of protecting the moral values of Indian society, these "Moral Police Officers" have backing from some conservative sections of society. Sometimes, the youth are in a dilemma wether they should express something beautiful out in the open or not.

The world has too few of love and more of hate in today's time. The question of Obscenity needs to be brought out here. Although there is a law against Obscenity in the Indian Penal Code, the very defination of Obscenity changes from time to time, place to place and more importantly from situation to situation. The lines of Obscenity and expression is indeed very thin. If looked at from a conservative and moralistic framework, expression of love is probably obscene, while it is the opposite in the case of a free thinking mind.

This has gone on for too long. The inability of society to speak out against the working of the so called Moral Police will not enable individuals to develop in life. I guess this inability might be due to the fact that Indian society is in a dilemma as to what is right and what is wriong when it comes to sensitive matters like this. Maybe, the remedies are silent suffering and the passage of time, but surely, the youth has to work this out by next year when similar incidences will occur. The question still remains: Can Indian Society speak out against Moral Policing?