India: A moral policing campaign organised by the ABVP recently attacked live-in relationships on Delhi university campus

The Times of India

DU riled up after ABVP campaign against live-ins
Umang Aggarwal,TNN | Oct 16, 2014, 11.29 PM IST

NEW DELHI : A campaign organised by the ABVP recently attacked live-in relationships on campus, but students and professors feel that regressive thinking, not such relationships, is the problem.

If you were one of those idealistic people who thought live-in relationships could work in Delhi, DU might have provided a glimmer of hope with its forward thinking students and professors who have an image of organising campaigns against any kind of discrimination, be it a Slut Walk or street plays on gender issues. But a recent campaign held by A campaign organised by the ABVPABVPABVP recently attacked live-in relationships on campus, but students and professors feel that regressive thinking, not such relationships, is the problem.at the Faculty of Arts on the issue of 'women's safety' has not gone down well with DU insiders, as it said that live-in and 'love jihad' will be 'monitored' on campus. Saket Bahuguna, a representative of the party, told us, "The campaign was to express concern on rising crime against women. And we think that live-in relationships contribute to that because unlike marriage, live-in relationships don't give financial security to a girl. They are against Indian culture. There are many cases of girl alleging rape by their boyfriends, and that has to stop." We spoke to some of the professors and students of the university to understand their reactions to the campaign.

Student politicians acting like khap panchayats

Keval Arora, a professor at KMC, says, "The fact that a student party gets to make statements like these in Delhi University is ridiculous. The party should have 110 actual problems to worry about. I don't want to take ABVP seriously, but what worries me is their claim that they are going to monitor any kind of friendship between people from different religions. They can do some serious damage there. As for a live-in, how can they use individual cases to argue that the lifestyle is skewed? Then what's the difference between them and a khap panchayat?"

Love jihad is intrusive

Rina Ramdev, professor at Sri Venkateshwara College, says, "This is intrusive because we are talking about adults. As if we don't have enough policing of couples on campus, now we even have student politicians policing bedrooms. We have been hearing about 'love jihad' in the UP area, and now, they have brought it to DU too. It could lead to a bloodbath. I cannot even imagine what they are trying to do to the university."

No room for debates

Ankush Bhardwaj, member of Shunya, the dramatics society of Ramjas College, says, "These parties have an 'Indian culture' ideology, where anything can be harmful to the culture. Our seniors had done a play last year to dispel misconceptions about live-in relationships. And they tell us that people used to come to them after the play to discuss the topic. Some would criticise them for justifying the matter and some would applaud them for creating awareness. Even when we talk about topics like legalisation of prostitution, people debate and discuss it afterwards. But such campaigns are trying to shut down the discussions that we have been trying to open up for years."

Live-ins don't need monitoring

Kamakshi Khanna, a student of LSR, says, "This is the kind of thing which you want to laugh at for a moment, and then, you realise that it's unfortunate because it could actually affect people's lives. I feel a live-in is a smart option. So, I don't understand why an organisation should be trying to monitor it. Even today, there's stigma attached to live-in relationships. So, people who are in it have to keep it hidden and such campaigns will only make things worse."

A live-in can be safer than marriage

Sukriti*, a PhD student, says, "I have been in a live-in relationship, and I also know professors who prefer it to marriage even at the age of 40. Just like a marriage, a live-in relationship can fail. It can be abusive. Just like a marriage, a live-in relationship can work out. It can be beautiful. Formalising the relationship doesn't cancel out the sad possibilities of abuse or even just disagreement. Why is that so hard for a DU student party to understand?"

Student politics are a bother

Rachit Bhatnagar, a second year student, says, "Generally, most of the student body doesn't really care about student politics. It's an added bother when they campaign before the elections, but people just try to look through them. The problem starts when they come up with a regressive campaign or pick a fight with the opposing party during a college fest, and that's when we are reminded of the reason as to why so many of us don't vote - there's simply no way of voting smart on campus."

(*Names changed upon request)