BBC News - Indian sect members vow to marry sex workers

• BBC News - Indian sect members vow to marry sex workers

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  • More than 1,000 followers of a multi-religious sect in northern India have pledged to marry female sex workers who want to escape exploitation.

    Young Hindu, Muslim and Sikh men have been queuing up at the Dera Sacha Sauda (Abode of the Real Deal) in the town of Sirsa as "wedding volunteers".

    They say they are doing so to stop the women from being exploited in brothels.

    They also claim that their move is part of a campaign to stop the spread of the HIV/Aids virus.

  • Business graduate Ashish Sachdeva, 22, is in the garments trade in the town of Sirsa. He believes that marrying a sex worker could be his chance to repay his debt to humanity and society.

    "I am very well settled and it will be the greatest honour for me to respond to Guru-ji's call."

    Nearly 100 young sex workers have contacted the DSS - from Calcutta's Shonagachi red light district to brothels in Delhi and Mumbai.

    "This will have to be a slow and delicately handled process," Dr Insan said.

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Forget the king, make a MONUMENT | Hard News

• Forget the king, make a MONUMENT | Hard News

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  • As Shivaji - the monument - became grander, the condition of his companions, the shahirs, deteriorated. Make no mistake - shahirs don't sing only about Shivaji; he's just one of the subjects. But he's the one they're very attached to. The tradition of shahiri received a boost during and after Shivaji's reign, so the innate connection between the two cannot be negated.

    And yet, consecutive state governments have failed to assist shahirs in a way that could sustain them. The present government plans to spend Rs 350 crore erecting a monument for Shivaji but gives merely Rs 500-1,000 as financial assistance to shahirs. One might wonder how a shahir, who is past 70, is expected to sustain himself on this paltry amount.

  • Now the same government is back in power. Over a month into its term, and yet, no mention has been made of the proposed Shivaji statue, which was a key election issue. While the government waits to lobby with the Centre for clearance, and then, perhaps, initiate work on the monument so that it remains a fresh election issue five years down the line, it might be a good idea to get some shahirs to sing powadas about Shivaji on the other coast of Mumbai. A Shivaji statue already stands tall behind the Gateway of India, and getting shahirs to perform there will not only mean enabling a means of sustenance for them, but also enable Shivaji, the monument, relate to people.

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आनंद मैरिज एक्ट लागू करे सरकार : मक्कड़

• Jagran - Yahoo! India - News

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  • अमृतसर एसजीपीसी के अध्यक्ष जत्थेदार अवतार सिंह मक्कड़ ने केंद्र सरकार से मांग की है कि वह सिखों की शादी का कानून 'आनंद मैरिज एक्ट' को तुरंत लागू करे। यह एक्ट वर्ष 1908 में अंग्रेजों ने पास किया था लेकिन अभी तक इसे लागू नहीं किया गया। इस कारण सिखों की शादियां हिंदू मैरिज एक्ट के अनुसार रजिस्टर्ड की जा रही हैं। आनंद मैरिज एक्ट को लागू करवाने के लिए एसजीपीसी सिख संगठनों व कानून विशेषज्ञों के साथ बातचीत कर मामला केंद्र सरकार के दरबार में लेकर जाएगी। जत्थेदार मक्कड़ फतेहगढ़ साहिब में आयोजित एसजीपीसी कार्यकारिणी बैठक को संबोधित कर रहे थे।

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किसने लगाया भिंडरांवाला का पोस्टर

• किसने लगाया भिंडरांवाला का पोस्टर

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  • पटियाला
  • मॉल रोड पर श्री काली देवी मंदिर के प्रांगण में हिंदू सुरक्षा समिति के कार्यालय के बाहर सोमवार रात को जरनैल सिंह भिंडरांवाला के पोस्टर लगाने से एक बार फिर तनाव की स्थिति पैदा हो गई है। हालांकि सुबह हिंदू संगठनों के कार्यकर्ताओं ने इन पोस्टरों को उतार दिया, लेकिन एक सवाल जरूर चर्चा का विषय बन गया कि आखिर किसने मंदिर में वो भी हिंदू सुरक्षा समिति के कार्यालय के बाहर इस तरह के पोस्टर लगाए और कैसे वो समिति के किसी कार्यकर्ता की निगाह में नहीं चढ़ा। फिलहाल पुलिस मामले की छानबीन कर रही है।

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