With their 'ghar wapsi' programme turning out to be a damp squib, the Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha (ABHM) has now changed its moral policing method for Valentine's Day.
It has coined a new phrase for this campaign: 'prem pariksha' (test of love) in which the activists will convince unmarried couples on February 14 to immediately tie the knot. Till last year, the Mahasabha members used to take law and order in their own hands and assault lovers on Valentine's Day.
But this time, volunteers of the Hindu outfit will be on the move in Braj area of Uttar Pradesh, approach lovebirds hanging around parks and shopping malls, take them to their office and ask them to get married right away.
They will not mind if a Hindu boy or girl is found with a Muslim or a Christian partner. But they will ask the non-Hindus to convert to Hinduism and then get into wedlock. Moreover, priests and lawyers will be available with each team of the ABHM to make the ceremony quick and hassle-free.
ABHM national president Chandra Prakash Kaushik said: "The non-Hindu boys and girls wouldn't be rigid about their religion if they are really in love. Further, they will not accept our offer if their affair is platonic or linked to physical attraction.
So they will be exposed." He said: "We have decided to start this campaign from Braj, the land of Lord Krishna. The members of the organisation have been issued instructions for our 'prem pariksha' campaign in the region."
Six teams have been constituted in Braj, which includes Agra and Mathura districts.
Mahesh Chandana, a Mahasabha leader in Agra, said: "We are extensively publicising it so that lovers come to know of our campaign before they venture out on Valentine's Day." They were also involved in 'ghar wapsi' programmes while working in close coordination with the Dharm Jagran Samiti of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
The ABHM had this year planned to install statues and busts, in Meerut and Sitapur, of Nathuram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi, on January 30-the day the Father of the Nation was killed in 1948. However, the police had foiled their plans.
On the other hand, the UP State Minorities Commission, in its report, had rejected the December 8, 2014 'Ghar Wapsi" programme' of Rightwing groups in Agra.
This was the first programme after which these organisations started 'Ghar Wapsi' to reconvert those Muslims and Christians whose forefathers were converted in the past. The minority panel report had ridiculed the 'Ghar Wapsi' programme and dubbed it "theatrics" of "some non-serious Right wing organisations".
(Indiatoday)
