New Delhi: The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal have announced setting up a dedicated helpline for women to report harassment and check the cases of so-called ‘love jihad’ at Garba events during Navratri in Gujarat. They also said they will conduct inspections and thoroughly check the identity of those entering Garba pandals.
In Surat, the Bajrang Dal has also asked Garba organisers to ensure those performing on the stage during the festivity are not scantily clad. Surat Bajrang Dal district president Jay Patel said females attending Garba events should refrain from wearing ‘backless’ and ‘deep neck’ clothes and maintain the sanctity of the place.
He said their effort is to reach the spot even before the police once they receive a call on the helpline number. “Three separate helpline numbers will be announced—for north, south and Saurashtra pranth. More details on it will be provided later. As far as our jurisdiction is concerned, we will be launching the helpline for South Gujarat. Our effort will be to reach before the police though we will also inform the police immediately once we receive any complaint,” Patel said.
“We will be supporting the law-enforcement agencies fully,” he added.
Navratri this year falls between 22 September and 2 October.
Giving details about the helpline in Surat, Patel said a team of 150 people comprising 90 women and 60 men will be tasked to respond to such calls, and reach Garba pandals and adjoining areas once they receive any such call.
“We will work in tandem with the police and if we reach before the police we will then handover the culprits to the police,” he added.
Over the past few years, there have been violence, disruptions and police action at and around Garba folk dance events, the mainstay of the nine-day festival of Navratri, with allegations that Muslim youths were allegedly trying to enter these venues. The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and its youth wing Bajrang Dal have been at the forefront of highlighting this issue with their workers apparently keeping a watch during the dance events in Gujarat.
This story was originally published in theprint.in. Read the full story here.
