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print versionLove Commandos unite to counter concept of love jihad, brings 30,000 couples together
Sunday, 21 September 2014 - 10:06am IST | Place: New Delhi | Agency: PTI
At a time when the country is being exposed to an oxymoronic term ’love jihad’, countering such a concept is an organisation with an equally paradoxical name called ’Love Commandos’.
With a vision of uniting love birds who have attained the legal age of marriage, Love Commandos claimed to have united over 30,000 couple in a short spell of four years.
"We want lovers to unite no matter which caste, community, religion or place they come from. There should be a society where love prevails over everything," says Chairman of Love Commandos, Sanjoy Sachdev.
The voluntary organisation, which mainly operates in Delhi from its office in Paharganj area, claims to provide protection to couples and guards them from the wrath of their angry parents, families or police, helps them fight harassment and give them shelter so they can marry freely.
"Our organisation started on July 2010 after we helped a couple in Delhi to unite after the boy was falsely charged by the girl’s family and had registered a police case against him," says Sachdev.
Its feisty, relentless fight for the cause of love continues unabated despite paucity of funds as one of its shelter homes operates as the group’s makeshift office.
It prefers to exist in perpetual liminality thinking too much visibility might lead to exposure of the eloped lovers.
"There are police cases lodged against many people whom we are helping and there are several groups who do not want us to continue with our activity," claims Sachdev, adding the circumstances often compels the organisation to constantly keep shifting their shelter homes.
The organisation has two helpline numbers that ring simultaneously in twelve cities across the country and on receiving a valid call for help the commandos swing into action.
