Moral Policing

I read a news article yesterday about an intercaste marriage in Bhopal which sent the saffron brigade on a rampage. They called for a strike in the city and asked for annulment of the marriage. They claimed that though a girl above 18 maybe legally an adult they still cannot make right decisions. Even after intervention by the Bombay High Court the VHP Leader had to say the following “The court has heard only one side of the case. The VHP will plead against it”.
Now there are just 2 sides to a wedding, the bride’s and the groom’s. Whoever gave the VHP any right to have a say in the wedding of every Indian be it a Hindu’s or a Non-Hindu ? How long will Indians live under the ominous shadow of the moral police ? People who claim that they are the guardians of our customs and traditions and can die or kill before anyone offends our(their) religious feelings. I am a Hindu and speaking for myself I can say that the wedding in Bhopal has not hurt my religious feelings nor did I feel ashamed. What embarasses me is the reaction of these Hindu Activist groups which claim that they speak for all the Hindus in the country each time an act by an innocent Hindu brushes their feathers the wrong way. It embarsses me too see them hold an entire city hostage to put forward a cause which is so much against the ideals of the “secular” State of India.
Do the Hindus of the country actually need to be taught and told what they can do and what they cannot as it hurts the religious sentiments of their fellow countrymen. Aren’t we all old and mature enough to differentiate the right from wrong. When will people in my country learn not to blow small issues out of proportion? When will they learn to focus their attention on more important issues like AIDS, corruption, global warming and ofcourse India’s biggest problem, population.