KOZHIKODE: “Is love conscious of the religious boundaries that it has to keep? Is it a crime for an adult Hindu youth to marry an adult Muslim woman? Does love mean crime?”
These questions have been raised by the youths seeing the plight of a just-married couple Gautham, a Hindu, and Anshidha, a Muslim. Online groups and various political youth organisations have rallied behind the couple who were facing threats to their life and ostracism for inter-religious marriage.
Gautham and Anshidha have lost all the charm of their marriage due to the grave threats from every corner. Expressing solidarity with them, who had to hide from the world for loving each other, SFI state secretary T.P. Bineesh said the right to love and marrying the loved one had been denied to the couple.
“We have already visited the couple’s residence and provided them support and met their requirements, including security,” he said.
Gautham, an engineer, would be assisted to continue in his profession and Anshidha would be given security to complete her BDS course, he pointed out.
“I welcome the decision of the couple to live together,” said noted social activist Seenath. “Born to a Muslim family, I am well aware of the stereotyped notions of the community,” she noted. “No religion has put a ban on the individual to live as one likes. So how can anyone curb the individual’s right to love,” she asked
According to DYFI district president P.A. Mohammed Riyas, love is being treated more like a subterranean issue by the religious groups. “We are not going to tolerate this any more,” he added.
However, the Facebook community of Indian Union Muslim League has been harassing the couple through various photos and posts and cursing them.
