Jamshedpur, Feb. 14: Valentine’s Day celebrations in the steel city ranged from the staid to the bizarre.

Jubilee Park was a hot bed of activity with cooing couples being accosted by social groups sharing love and burning cards alike. The park also witnessed garland exchanges.

Keeping with the belief that love and fresh air are just not enough, one has to have health and well-being on their side as well, Akhil Bharatiya Sonia Gandhi Prachar Dal took to the park to celebrate the day of love, with not flowers and candy, but with 50 roses and 25 bottle gourds. Being partial to men, the organisation stoked their fantasies by giving them a poster of Katrina Kaif. Couples at Jubilee Park were offered these gifts.

“This is the fifth year that we are celebrating Valentine’s Day here, since it’s popular among the youth. The rose symbolises love and since Baba Ramdev considers bottle gourd healthy, it is a message for a healthy lifestyle. We are distributing 10 posters of Katrina Kaif because most men would like to date on this day,” said Suraj Kant Nag, president of the organisation.

On a not so sweet note, around 60 members of the Rashtriya Manav Jan Kalyan Seva not only opposed the day but also made couples who were enjoying the day at Jubilee Park, Bhetya Park and other public places in the city exchange rakhis and garlands. Members descended on Jubilee Park and taught couples about Indian traditions, which does not include Valentine’s Day.

“We have always opposed this day and will continue doing that. Valentine’s Day is a western concept which will never find place in our culture,” said Dipak Yadav, a Bajrang Dal member.

However, police were deployed at various public places to avoid any untoward incidents. A mild lathicharge was also carried out at 1pm at the Jubilee Park against the members of the Bajrang Dal and other organisations.

Police also warned couple to go home to avoid untoward situations.

“We are here to provide security to the visitors and are neither opposing nor supporting Valentine’s Day,” said Anwar Ali, assistant sub inspector at Jubilee Park.

The Valentine's Day in the city received mixed responses from various parties, groups and organisations. If some opposed the day through burning Valentine's Day greeting cards, others promoted love at public places offering unique gifts to couples.

The Akhil Bharatiya Sonia Gandhi Prachar Dal celebrated Valentine’s Day with its 35 member team at the Jubilee Park in the morning. The members of the group were promoting love by presenting a rose, bottle gourd and posters of Katrina Kaif. Each gift had a different meaning. If rose represented love, bottle gourd represented a healthy lifestyle.

“For the last five years we have been celebrating the Valentine’s Day in the Jubilee Park as it is the biggest and the most wanted venue for couples who come here to celebrate. Along with roses we are offering a bottle gourd because according to Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev, bottle gourd juice is considered to stay healthy. So there is not only a message of love but also a message of a healthy lifestyle,” said Kishen Khanna, spokesperson of Akhil Bharatiya Sonia Gandhi Prachar Dal.

”We are distributing posters of Katrina Kaif as she has been voted the most popular actresses (as aired on television) with whom men want to celebrate Valentine's Day,” said Suraj Kant Nag, president of Akhil Bharatiya Sonia Gandhi Prachar Dal.

The organisation had bought about 50 roses, 25-bottle gourd and about 10 posters of Katrina Kaif to distribute it among the couples celebrating Valentine's Day at the Jubilee Park. The members of the organisations not only roamed across the Jubilee Park but also waited more couples to come. Sweets were also distributed among the couples to celebrate the day.

On the other hand opposed the Valentine's Day by burning greeting cards and gifts meant for Valentine's Day. Members of the Rashtriya Manav Jan Kalyan Seva opposed the day by educating couples at the Jubilee Park about the Indian traditions and that Valentine's Day is a western concept in the country. Members of the Bajrang Dal not only opposed the day but also organised on the spot wedding for couples enjoying the day at various public places in the city.

About 60 members of the Bajrang Dal visited the Jubilee Park, Bhetya Park and other public places to oppose the Valentine's Day.

”We have always opposed the Valentine's Day for years now and would continue doing that. Valentine's Day is a western concept which would never find place in our culture,” said Dipak Yadav, a member of the Bajrang Dal. However, police were deployed at various public places to avoid any untoward incident. A mild lathicharge by the police was also carried out at about 1 pm at the Jubilee Park against the members of the Bajrang Dal and other organisation.

The police also warned the couple to go to their homes if they wanted to be safe. “We are here to provide security to the visitors. We are neither opposing nor supporting the Valentine's Day but our duty is to safeguard the public. We had to warn the protestors as they were creating ruckus in public place unecessarily. On the other hand we also told the couple to go home to avoid any other incident,” said Anwar Ali, assistant sub inspector on duty at the Jubilee Park.