I knew that religious conservatives in Pakistan did not like Valentine’ Day, but it was never a big deal. Most of the protests and shattering windows of shops and cars occurred on New Year’s eve. It seems like things have changed somewhat according to BBC:
Conservative forces in the Middle East and South Asia have cracked down on shops marketing Valentine’s Day.
In the Indian capital, Delhi, several people were reported injured when stores selling romantic cards and gifts were attacked by right-wing militants.
Police in Iran, meanwhile, are reported to have closed several shops in Tehran, while religious groups in Pakistan have held protests against the 14 February celebration.
Religious hardliners consider such Western occasions as decadent and an insult to Hinduism and Islam.
In Delhi, about a dozen members of the Hindu Shiv Sena Party attacked two shops selling Valentine items, completely destroying one of the properties. An eyewitness told the French news agency AFP: “They came in two cars and began shouting anti-Valentine’s Day slogans before entering the shop. “They smashed the glass windows, lights and other fixtures, and tore the cards.”
Security has been stepped up across the country to head off violent protests that have occurred in recent years. In the Indian city of Bombay, police will be on full alert to ensure Valentine’s Day passes peacefully, a senior police official, Himanshu Roy, told the BBC.
Authorities in Iran have shut stores selling Valentine’s Day products and ordered others to remove heart-and-flower decorations.
In Pakistan, fundamentalist students condemned Valentine’s Day as a day of shame and lust.
Well, may be Shiv Sena and Muslim fundamentalist groups should march together against Valentine’s day. That would be some sight!
Here is some more news about the crazy extremists of South Asia:
“[Valentine’s Day] is nothing but a Western onslaught on India’s culture to attract youth for commercial purposes,” said senior Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray, son of group leader Bal Thackeray. Last week, Bal Thackeray said anyone wanting to avoid violence on Valentine’s Day should not celebrate it.
On Tuesday, 20 Shiv Sena activists stole cards from a shop in central Bombay. Shouting “long live Shiv Sena”, they burned the cards on the pavement outside.
Other Hindu fundamentalist parties like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal have also said they will oppose Valentine’s Day celebrations.
In Pakistan, the student wing of the fundamentalist Islamic party Jamaat-e-Islami also called for a ban on Valentine’s Day celebrations. Khalid Waqas Chamkani, a leader of the wing in North-West Frontier Province, said: “This is a shameful day. The people in the West are just fulfilling and satisfying their sex thirst.”
However, celebrating Valentine’s Day, named after the Christian patron saint of lovers, has become increasingly popular in both India and Pakistan. Many hotels in both nations put on Valentine’s dinners and balls, while the media allow lovers radio and newspaper slots to broadcast messages.
One card stockist in Bombay said couples would celebrate the day despite the protests. “It is just sad for poor shop owners who are the unlucky targets,” he said.
Why can’t these extremists just let people be. Let them celebrate love on Valentine’s day or any other day they want. Does it matter if it is a Western thing?
They are just trying to attract attention. Ignore them and see their tune change. I am not sure about the other places in the Middles East and S.Asia but in India no one can dampen the spirits of either the businesses selling valentines day nor the eager public. In true democratic spirit everyone does what each one wants to do – some protest the day and a whole lot more celebrate the day.
nor should have been or
how much ever they protest people who want to celebrate valentines day will do so….so why waste their time and everyones else time protesting?? live and let live….everyone has the right to choose what they wish to celebrate!!
why r some indian religious extremist always against west,If they r against west then why r ppl in india prefireng to learn english and going to western countries,why r they drinking pepsi and cola and other many things.Even the pants jeans, t-shirts,and almost all the mordern things r western origin if u r against then stop using that.Western countries has gifted many th9ngs to india what we have given to them.Even the person who r protesting like western materiels ,and culture ,Indian culture is the greatest of all but. As far as india is concerned indian citizen r free to choose their religion and their way of life etc then y this narrow minded rss and shivasena ppl creating problems.their is one line in the bible if u force a child not to do that particular thing ,he will do that.God save this narrow minded ppls
valentines should not be celebrated at least in india or in asia.
we do not want a repeat case of what has happenned in ahmedabad n 31 st dec when a girl was raped .and she latter commited sucide.
govt should put a ban on the celebrations . there is noting like people selecting there choices.
if this is so then govt should allow blue films in theaters and leave it to audience who will see it or who do not want to see.
sex should be allowed on streets and let the passer by decide to see it or not
jan: Agreed.
cyril: There are obviously extremists and moderates everywhere, including India.
sunil: How is valentine’s day similar to rape or porn?
The argument that allowing people to celebrate Valentine’s day will lead to people having sex in the streets (i.e. moral breakdown) reminds me of the arguments that were voiced in concern during the introduction of television into society. In many countries, conservative forces offered up similar doomsday prophecies as sunil does above. We can all agree that a lot of garbage is shown on television, but that doesn’t mean that society has fallen apart and replaced by anarchy, now has it? Some people are opposed to any change, just because it represents change….
opps that got posted too many times….sorry
and thankx zack
jan: Lots of things and events have been characterized as the end of morality over the years.
opps that got posted too many times….sorry
No problem. I deleted the duplicates.
zack
we dont want to have india liek that of us or any other western countery.
as per new studies and observations there is high no of couples getting divorced in western country . a teen age girl is getting pregnant .
why do we have to celebrate a day which does not have any significance to indian culture .
this valentine day is celebrated in india for the last 8 years .
when st valentine was killed in 260 AD.
why all this years were all indian sleeping ? and suddenly love was day started celebrating every where.
this day is being hyped by all media and companies like Archies and other gifts manufacturing companies who make good profit on this day ,
of more than 1500 crores .
every love should end up in successfull marriage .not in other countries where divorce rate are so high .
how can u celebrate a day with such happiness when on the same day st valentine was killed .how can a killig be celebrated with parties , giving flowes , in discos and by giving gifts . this day cant no way be celebarted with such joy.
Love need not be declared on this day . u have another 364 days to declare it .
pls send this article to all and bring awareness .
pls let us have an discussion on this matter .
Sunil wrote:
>why do we have to celebrate a day which does >not have any significance to indian culture
No one’s forcing anyone to celebrate Valentine’s day. If you don’t want to, then don’t. But why spoil it for the people who do want to celebrate / do something special on this day? Why interfere with their choice? Why stop people from enjoying themselves? I am reminded of the following quote by William S. Burroughs:
“Most of the trouble in this world has been caused by folks who can’t mind their own business, because they have no business of their own to mind, any more than a smallpox virus has …”
Yes, the tradition of Valentine’s day has not originated in Indian culture, but neither have the following:
– Santa Claus
– Easter eggs
– Christmas decorations
By Sunil’s logic these would be next on the death list, correct? There has to be interaction between cultures for any sort of development to take place.
Finally, with respect to divorce rates: Many marriages don’t work out in India as well, but it is more common for husband and wife to live apart, but stay legally married. Hence it doesn’t show up on any statistic. Furthermore, it seems in the West that society accepts that people can fall out of love and that its better sometimes to end a miserable marriage than enduring it. It’s a sign of stronger rights for women that they are allowed to divorce and remarry in the West (without the stigma).
Thanks for listening,
Jan
dear jan
valentine day is being celebrated in india for the last 8 years . where as xmas and santa clauss is being celebrated for many many countless years .
christmas is being celebrated mostly by christians and it has some history behind it .
what is the history behind valentine day .
why only for the last 8 years love aroused every where in india .
before 8 years was there no love in india . were there no celebrations in india .
this val day is hyped by companies like archies and companies who r in gift items .
if at all in india if we want to celebrate any day there r many many days .
celebrate laila majnu day
celEbrate radha krishna day …
why indians have to celebrate a valentine day .Wwhy here is no hype for parents day.
i bet that majority of people celebrating this day in india may not be aware of the history behind this day .
they dont know who was this valentine . which era he lived , for whom did he fought . what was his age at the time of his execution.what was his source of earning ???/ and many many questions but no answers.
by accepting valentine days , ftv shows and mtv shows we r going towards the culture of west .
Regrding minding business , this is just not like allow people to do what they want and what they dont .
we r fighting a battle by all democratic means to see that indians will stop celbrating valentine day.
we dont want our culturual values to diminish.
r people in west celebrating any of indian culture .
say holi , gudi padwa , bhai duj , rakhi .id .ramzan etc etc .
in india we have plenty of festivals , holidays , film theaters , picnic spots to enjoy . just one day cant be a day for enjoyment .
increasing of divorce rates in india is becuse of the same problem , just following west .there has been an increase of extra marital affairs in india . who is going to take resposibility for this .if we dont control in time soon we will be compared in statistics with west in figures in terms of teenage pregnancies , divorce rates ..etc etc ..
regarding choosing people what they want>>>>>
why there r laws in world for the crimes . why dont govt sell drugs like heoine , cocine and allow the customers to choose weither he want to select it or not .why do parents beat there childrens , why dont they allow them to do what they want .]
we r living in society there has to be some guidelines
of what to do and what not to do .
another comment that stop using pepsi and cola and wearing jeans >>>
we r ready to stop using this things but what impact it will have on west countries . india is now a big market for there products . if all of us stop using it all those companies in US will close down .there will be rise in unemployment .it will stop bringing money to US.
shiv sena and rss are not narrow minded , they r having followers in huge nos in all over world .
govt in india is backed by rss and shiv sena .they cant be handfull of peole .
moreover there was opposition for this day in all over world in india , pakistan iran etc .
regrds
feedback expected from readers
Sunil,
If you do a search on Google for ‘Valentine’s day’ and ‘history’ you’ll be able to read up on the necessary background.
>before 8 years was there no love in india . were there no celebrations in india .
Celebrating V day is not a prerequisite for love, nor an effect of it. It is true that V day is hyped by companies, but capitalism has to be blamed for that, not the custom itself. I don’t care much for the commercial aspect of V day, but I don’t think anything’s wrong with the tradition unto itself. You have to separate the two concepts. People seeking to make money off of something will always creep in with a capitalist system. (And India is really encouraging capitalism and foreign investments these days, so the politicians have got nothing to complain about!)
>celebrate laila majnu day
>celEbrate radha krishna day …
Absolutely!! There must be room for all of these, and it should be up to the individual to decide what days he/she should celebrate. What’s with banning stuff?
> why indians have to celebrate a valentine day
Again, who’s forcing anyone? People celebrate of own free will, don’t they? And for those that do, it’s NOT other people’s business to tell them they can’t do it — in my opinion.
> Wwhy here is no hype for parents day
Probably because young people are more interested in their own love lifes than their families. Sad, but true. Probably has to do with hormones.
Furthermore, being aware of the history behind a special day is preferable, but not essential in order to ensure enjoyment.
>we r fighting a battle by all democratic means to see that indians will stop celbrating valentine day.
>we dont want our culturual values to diminish.
You use the keyword ‘democratic’ here. This means that people decide, not the elite. If you don’t want people to celebrate V day, by all means give people good arguments as to why they should not (which you have not so far) Then let each decide what to do. Banning V day breaks a little with the principles of democracy, the way I see it. Indian values/trads should obviously be kept alive, but actively preventing change may have the opposite effect: What is labeled “evil” by fundamentalists becomes attractive and mysterious to the younger generation.
>this .if we dont control in time soon we will be compared in statistics with west in figures in terms of teenage pregnancies , divorce >rates ..etc etc ..
Yes, so you’ll better make sure there’s lot of stigma attached to divorce, and that women who break out of a marriage lose all respect, so that they will be too scared to do anything about a failed marriage. That’ll teach them.
> why there r laws in world for the crimes
Because these typically hurt other people. Sending someone a card does not affect anyone in a negative way, does it? As long as what you do does not harm other people, it should be ok to do so, shouldnt it? That’s a fundamental principle in most moral philosophy, so it can’t be totally off, and should apply, even in India.
If the citizens want Valentine’s day banned, why not put it to a vote? Besides being a good way to waste public funds, it would also settle the matter permanently. And in accordance with democratic principles.
Jan
And another thing:
Sunil wrote:
> why do parents beat there childrens , why dont they allow them to do what they want
This is where Sunil displays the kinds of values that he believes in. Let’s ban Valentine’s day, because it involves people declaring love, and allow the beating of children.
I dearly hope you are not a person of power or importance, for your values are from the middle ages.
dear jan
hi
i will ans u one by one and see that u beleive in me and
that u do not celebrate val. day next year .
see regarding search on google for information on
val. day it is not possible in india or
pakistan where net is access to persons who can speak english
there is very high % of illiteracy in inida .and very few people
have access to internet , so i bet that not every one will know the
background behind val. day .It will never be
known to majority of people who are
celebrating this day . i think u too have searched for the details
after celebrating val day .
valentine day is like playing feeling of an individual .here point is not weither
who is earning or making huge profits .
but it is with playing sentiments of the people who
dont know who this val was and what great
work he did , and that too one who is not of indian
origin .does west have any day celebrated for brother sis love or parents love .so dont u think
val day is a day to satisfy ones lust .
west should now start celebrating indian festivals that will build a strong bond of love and affection between
individuals among the family .
in india we have maximum no of festivals.india is also know as country of festivals.
again i emphasis on baning val day
just for the reasons mentioned above .
it just cant left to people to decide what they want to do .
if a person kills someone the whole
public asks the police to hand over the murderer to them.but police cant do that
because what people r asking for cant be justified .
why there r censor boards in india .
why there r rules and regulations ??? if every thing is left to public i cant imagine what will
happen that day .
also there r many people opposing this day . so there must be some point that they r trying to make
, so that u all understand.there r not just 10 or 20 people against it .
in fact the ruling govt of india is against this day also shiv sena , bajrang dal , sangh parivar .
regarding people not celebrting parents day >>>ur argumnet is not at all acceptable .
i have love for my parents but i dont have to say to them
every day and night that i love u… in the same way to my girl friend i dont have to say now and then that i love her.
love has to be understood it is at first sight it happens any where
any time and not just on 14 feb.
again this day is being celebrated for the last 8 years .before that no body was knowing abt this day
if it has to be a history day then it should have been celebrated right from the history .
today it is valentine day tomorrow there will
be some other day ….and it will go on…
u wont imagine i have seen small childrens celebrating val day in some convent school , small means not even in firststand ,jr kg
students, how will u explain this . it will
lead to physical attraction , between 2 sex .
by democratic means actually means by opposing by giving dharnas
by spreading awareness , by stopping cards galleries from keeping val day cards .
it cant be put to vote , is there any example
in india where a problem is solved by voting .it can be solved by bringing awareness among people
against this day.
hope u understand my points and pls contact me if u have any thing to ask
regards
sunil
dear jan
hi
i will ans u one by one and see that u beleive in me and
that u do not celebrate val. day next year .
see regarding search on google for information on
val. day it is not possible in india or
pakistan where net is access to persons who can speak english
there is very high % of illiteracy in inida .and very few people
have access to internet , so i bet that not every one will know the
background behind val. day .It will never be
known to majority of people who are
celebrating this day . i think u too have searched for the details
after celebrating val day .
valentine day is like playing feeling of an individual .here point is not weither
who is earning or making huge profits .
but it is with playing sentiments of the people who
dont know who this val was and what great
work he did , and that too one who is not of indian
origin .does west have any day celebrated for brother sis love or parents love .so dont u think
val day is a day to satisfy ones lust .
west should now start celebrating indian festivals that will build a strong bond of love and affection between
individuals among the family .
in india we have maximum no of festivals.india is also know as country of festivals.
again i emphasis on baning val day
just for the reasons mentioned above .
it just cant left to people to decide what they want to do .
if a person kills someone the whole
public asks the police to hand over the murderer to them.but police cant do that
because what people r asking for cant be justified .
why there r censor boards in india .
why there r rules and regulations ??? if every thing is left to public i cant imagine what will
happen that day .
also there r many people opposing this day . so there must be some point that they r trying to make
, so that u all understand.there r not just 10 or 20 people against it .
in fact the ruling govt of india is against this day also shiv sena , bajrang dal , sangh parivar .
regarding people not celebrting parents day >>>ur argumnet is not at all acceptable .
i have love for my parents but i dont have to say to them
every day and night that i love u… in the same way to my girl friend i dont have to say now and then that i love her.
love has to be understood it is at first sight it happens any where
any time and not just on 14 feb.
again this day is being celebrated for the last 8 years .before that no body was knowing abt this day
if it has to be a history day then it should have been celebrated right from the history .
today it is valentine day tomorrow there will
be some other day ….and it will go on…
u wont imagine i have seen small childrens celebrating val day in some convent school , small means not even in firststand ,jr kg
students, how will u explain this . it will
lead to physical attraction , between 2 sex .
by democratic means actually means by opposing by giving dharnas
by spreading awareness , by stopping cards galleries from keeping val day cards .
it cant be put to vote , is there any example
in india where a problem is solved by voting .it can be solved by bringing awareness among people
against this day.
hope u understand my points and pls contact me if u have any thing to ask
regards
sunil
sunil: west should now start celebrating indian festivals.
Strange since you are so strongly opposed to India celebrating western festivals.
it just cant left to people to decide what they want to do. if a person kills someone,
Your analogy is clearly completely wrong. And why can’t the celebration or not of a day be left to individuals? Those who want to can celebrate Valentine’s day, or Christmas, or Eid, or Basant, or Diwali. Those that don’t want to shouldn’t.
hi zack
thanks for ur reply
i will answere u .
yes west should now celebrate indian festivals .
just check how many couples apply for divorce in west and in india or in asia ?? in some parts of west
nealry more than 40 percent .. ya its true.
if west is celebrating valentine day with a holiday then why there
are so mny divorce rates???
this question needs to be understood in depth and also needs a survey
, observation , and thinking deep.
we dont want in india to happen the same .
in west there is complete breakdown of family life … what is
the answere ??
we dont want our culture similar to that of west .
or soon we will see couples celebrating val day and then next year
divorce.
what abt the chilrens in kg celebrating val day.what do they know abt love/
the days were arranged by the teachers and schools.
valentine day is mostly celbrated by college going students .
just think when they are not sure of how they will earn there living .. how
they can select a val. val day is nothing but lust day …
Also history is not sure regarding Saint Valentine,there r many controversies
for whom the famous day is named. Archaeologists, who
unearthed a Roman catacomb and an ancient church dedicated
to St. Valentine, are not sure if there was one Valentine or
more. Today, the Catholic Church recognizes at least three
different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom
were martyred on February 14 — at least two of those in Italy
during the 3rd century. The most popular candidate
for St. Valentine was a 3rd century Roman priest who
practiced Christianity and performed secret marriages
against direct orders from Emperor Claudius II, who
believed single soldiers were more likely to join his
army. Legend has it that Valentine sent a friend
(the jailer’s daughter) a note signed “From Your Valentine”
before he was executed on February 14 in 270 A.D.
In 496 A.D., Pope Gelasius named February 14 in honor of St.
Valentine as the patron saint of lovers. however In 1969, Pope Paul VI
dropped it from the calendar.
when pop is telling u not to celebrate then why u want to make such a issue of such a
small matter.
today in us i billion cards are being sold on this day , who is geting profit and how
just by playing with our feelings .
individulals cant left to choose what they want .
otherwise why there is a ban on tobacco or smoking in public places .
val day hurts feeling and sentiments of individuals . it is not linked indian culture . it is more inclined to
western culture .history of val is not know properly . pop has dropped this day from the caleder.
then why u are celebtaring this day . u have seen consequences of this day in west.how
can india start celebrate a day which is just 8 years old.
how can a day be celebrated when its hstory is not known properly and pop has opposed it.
few gift vendors are getting enourmous profits by giving publicity to this day .
indian culture is respected world wide iam afraid how long if we go on celebrating this day..
sunil
sunil: I think we have reached an impasse. We’ll have to agree to disagree since this discussion isn’t going anywhere.
zack: i agree with you whole heartedly
sunil: good luck in protecting india from western influence….i am sure it will be a winning battle….
dear zack
thanks for supporting me …
i need a assurance from ur side that u will neither celebrate nor allow others to celebrate (in all democratic ways) this val day.
regards
sunil
sunil: huh?
I can’t give you that assurance. I celebrate Valentine’s day myself. But since I am not an Indian, it shouldn’t bother you.
dear zack
i would be happy if u stop celebrating val. day .
But no problem if u want to celebrate it .Be loyal to ur val.
And dont display your affection to ur val in public place.
regards
sunil
sunil: I don’t see anything wrong with public display of affection. Within limits, of course.
yes zack
i agreee.
regards
sunil
I think this is not for the Indian People culture, who r celebrating the valentines day.
because indian r not belonging from the westurn culturer.
to Noorul Ambeya
Even though it is not an Indian celebration it is their personal choice what they wish to celebrate and no one has a right to impose their decisions on them.
Love is a path to the heart that knows its own way.
ya i completely agree with you the “DALAL DIVAS” (coined by me) or the valentine’s day has to be banned ..its a juvenile lunacy and utter foolishness to follow Mr Valentine who was a notorious DALAL or BROKER,and use to earn his livelihood by promoting adulterous and illegal multiple marriages ..its pure stupidity of the youth to blindly celebrate such an insane and illicit man . Specially the rich and varied indian culture has to be preserved against taken over by such juvenile lunacy.