‘Remember Bijal, say no to Santa’

‘‘December 31 toh Kristiyon ka naya saal hai… hume isse kya lena dena? Diwali manane se kabhi kisiko roka hai kya? (It’s New Year for the Christians, why should we celebrate? Has anybody stopped students from celebrating Diwali?’’ asks Hetal Patel, the coordinator. She adds, ‘‘Woh dharm, sanskriti or sabhyata se pare hai. (It is against our religion, tradition and culture.’’

‘‘We went to Navgujarat College, B.D. Shah College for Women, H.K. Arts and Commerce College, C.U. Shah Arts college, P.T. College, Sahjanand College, G.B. Shah College to distribute pamphlets and stay away from the celebrations,’’ Patel said.

The pamphlet defines what each day stands for on campus: * Traditional Day: A day to see how a girl looks in traditional dress

• Friends Day: Just friendship, nothing else • Rose Day: Give roses to each other, and then… • Valentine’s Day: Exchange of vulgar messages in the name of love • December 31: Remember what happened in Ahmedabad last year, why was a girl forced to commit suicide?

The outfit has not even consulted Bijal’s family before using her name in the campaign. ‘‘Everyone knows what happened last year. There is no need to talk to Bijal’s family about this,’’ Patel said.

Durga Vahini volunteers did not take prior permission from college principals either before distributing the pamphlets. The college authorities, on the other hand, are quiet on the issue.

Principal of Sahjanand Arts and Commerce College R.S. Thakur said: ‘‘I came to know about it, but I did not see them in the college. They may have distributed pamphlets outside the college. We have now decided to keep the gates closed.’’

‘‘We are getting good response. Some students even said they will take an oath against celebrating this festival,’’ Patel claims.