The Pride march in Bengaluru recently concluded, attracting thousands of participants from across Karnataka, Delhi, Chennai, and Mumbai. The event took place near Kanteerava Outdoor Stadium on Sunday. However, a video surfaced on social media on Friday, causing outrage among users, showing participants raising "azadi" slogans.
The widely circulated video showed participants carrying the Pride flag and placards as they marched down the streets. One participant initiated the "azadi" slogans, quickly joined by others. Several participants could be seen chanting "Manuvaad se azadi," "Brahmanvaad se azadi," and "Hindutvavaad se azadi."
Social media users react
The video drew criticism from some social media users.
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"'Hindutva se azadi'- Pride march in Bengaluru. All JNU students shifted to Bangaluru," said one user on X (formerly Twitter).
"A video of Bengaluru’s Pride March where slogans of “Hindutva se Azadi” are being raised. What’s the relevance of this slogan in a march like this ? Who’s agenda are y’all trying to spread in the name of “gender-equality”?" asked another user.
"'Hindutva se azadi' pride march in Bengaluru? Some people seem to have lost their way, asking for 'freedom' from their own roots. Maybe they're just following the herd without a clue," one of the X users wrote.
The 'azadi' chant
The "azadi" chants gained popularity in 2016 when Jawaharlal Nehru University student Kanhaiya Kumar used them during a protest. According to a March 2016 report in Hindustan Times, the chant originated against patriarchy by feminist Kamla Bhasin. The original words, as coined by Bhasin, were "Meri behane maange Azadi, meri bachhi maange Azadi, naari ka naara Azadi... (My sisters want freedom, my daughter wants freedom, every woman’s slogan is freedom)."
