While Sri Rama Sene has announced plans to punish those celebrating V0Day, Rajeev Gowda, a professor at IIM-Bangalore and political activist, has unveiled his protest programme.
The attack on women in a Mangalore pub and threats against those celebrating Valentine’s Day have fuelled a lot of anger, disgust, and even fear among Bangaloreans. While Sri Rama Sene leader Pramod Muthalik has announced plans to punish those celebrating Valentine’s Day, Rajeev Gowda, a professor at IIM-Bangalore and political activist, has unveiled his protest programme — Bengaluru Unites — against moral policing.
Under Bengaluru Unites, simultaneous protests will be held in different parts of the city on February 12 afternoon. Rajeev Gowda, who was a runner-up on BBC World’s Mastermind India, spoke to Jalaja Ramanunni on his protest Bengaluru Unites protest.
What is prompting you to hold this Bengaluru Unites protest?
After the attacks in Mangalore, people didn’t get a chance to express the intensity and depth of their feelings. This is a platform for everyone to stand up for their rights and voice their opinion.
What is the aim of this protest?
Our aim is to stop moral policing and to stop attacks on the fundamental rights of Indians. Indians can’t be denied their fundamental rights and asked to live in fear. We want people from all parts of the city to participate.
We have chosen places like Jyothi Nivas College, Mount Carmel College, ITPL, IIM, St Joseph’s College, Sasken on Inner Ring road, Residency Road and Yelahanka. In fact, we’re still adding to the list of protest venues, depending on enquiries from interested volunteers.
What do you plan to do during the protest?
The protest will be held simultaneously for 15 minutes from 1:30 pm. We will raise slogans against the attacks on women, without disturbing the traffic or the normal lives of people and certainly, without violence.
Why have you chosen many venues rather than a single one?
If I hold it in a single place like Mahatma Gandhi statue, people from other parts of the city will find it hard to reach there. Only about a hundred will reach it, while people in other locations who want to participate can’t come all the way for just 15 minutes.
Instead, I’m taking the protest to the people — outside colleges, offices and the different hubs in the city.
Why have you taken this initiative?
My father and his brothers went to jail to secure freedom. I can’t sit back and watch this freedom being taken away.
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