if Indians, shivs or not would be able to solve their problems, there wont be any problems for Gere or any one else to solve!

We are unfortunately part of problems, not part of solution, and if some one from outside would like to do that, then they need our blessings etc, to do, how we would like them to do..pretty unfortunate!!

now...problems of might India is diff issue but this Gere/Shilpa fiasco, and its handling is a seperate issue but very much related to basic mentality imho.

Believe me, just given a chance, all sena plus others would be ready to take on Shilpa, if given a chance, but may be not on the stage but in darkness of their own world! :

Unfortunately that is the case. But Indians being very diverse people from different backgrounds as they are, would feel differently from other Indians regarding the Gere/Shetty embrace. The media just seemed to be focusing on the sena response.

This keeps getting more and more outrageous:
-----------------------------------------------------------
India may arrest Richard Gere over kiss


NEW DELHI - A court issued arrest warrants for Hollywood actor Richard Gere and Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty on Thursday, saying their kiss at a public function "transgressed all limits of vulgarity," media reports said.

Judge Dinesh Gupta issued the warrants in the northwestern city of Jaipur after a local citizen filed a complaint charging that the public display of affection offended local sensibilities, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

Gupta earlier viewed television footage of the event, which he called "highly sexually erotic," saying the pair violated India's strict public obscenity laws.

Gere and Shetty "transgressed all limits of vulgarity and have the tendency to corrupt the society," PTI quoted the judge as saying.

Such cases against celebrities — often filed by publicity seekers — are common in conservative India. They add to a backlog of legal cases that has nearly crippled the country's judicial system.

Gere left India shortly after the kissing incident and it was not immediately clear how the warrant would affect him.

Gere is a frequent visitor to India, promoting health issues and the cause of Tibetan exiles. The Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has his headquarters in the north Indian town of Dharmsala.

Under Indian law a person convicted of public obscenity faces up to three months in prison, a fine, or both.

Last week, crowds in several Indian cities burned effigies of the 57-year-old star of "An Officer and a Gentleman," "American Gigolo" and "Pretty Woman" after he embraced Shetty and kissed her several times on her cheeks during an HIV/ AIDS awareness event in the Indian capital.

Photographs of the clinch were then splashed across front pages in India — where public displays of affection are largely taboo.

The judge lambasted Shetty for not resisting Gere's kisses and ordered her to appear in his court May 5, PTI said. A spokesman for Shetty declined comment.

The event's organizer, Parmeshwar Godrej, called the controversy a distraction from more important issues.

"It has detracted from and undermined the value and success of the event, which was concerned with creating AIDS awareness and promoting AIDS prevention among truck drivers," CNN-IBN quoted her as saying.

Shetty, 31, has said the embrace was not obscene and that the media should instead focus on HIV/AIDS awareness.

"I understand this is his culture, not ours. But this was not such a big thing or so obscene for people to overreact in such manner," she told PTI last week.

"I understand people's sentiments, but I don't want a foreigner to take bad memories from here," PTI quoted her as saying.

Shetty, already well-known in India, became an international star after her appearance on the British reality show "Celebrity Big Brother" — another controversial public appearance. A fellow contestant, Jade Goody, sparked international headlines by making allegedly racist comments to Shetty. Mobs took to the streets of India to denounce Goody, and Shetty went on to win the competition.

holly molly!!Who says justice is blind lol

.

Gere downplays India kissing controversy (AP)

NEW DELHI - Richard Gere denounced a small right-wing minority in India whose complaints and protests led to a judge issuing an arrest warrant against the Hollywood star for violating the country's strict public obscenity laws.


Judge Dinesh Gupta issued the warrants Thursday in the northwestern city of Jaipur after a local citizen filed a complaint charging that a public kiss Gere gave to Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty at an AIDS awareness event offended local sensibilities.

"There is a very small right-wing, very conservative political party in India and they are the moral police in India and they do this kind of thing quite often," Gere told Comedy Central's "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" on Thursday.

Gere said he was confident the issue would be sorted out.

"I don't know that any one has actually gone to jail, it has to go through a process. It goes to a reputable court and they throw it out," he said.

Under Indian law, a person convicted of public obscenity faces up to three months in prison, a fine, or both.

Gere, who left India shortly after the kissing incident, is a frequent visitor to India, promoting health issues and the cause of Tibetan exiles. The Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has his headquarters in the northern Indian town of Dharmsala.

Legal experts agreed with Gere.

"The order is unsustainable and makes us look ridiculous," India's former attorney general Soli Sorabjee told the Times of India newspaper. "Magistrates should not act like Taliban moral police."

Last week, crowds in several Indian cities burned effigies of the 57-year-old star of "An Officer and a Gentleman," "American Gigolo" and "Pretty Woman" after he embraced Shetty and kissed her several times on her cheeks during an HIV/AIDS awareness event in the Indian capital.

Photographs were splashed across front pages in India, where public displays of affection are largely taboo.

The judge lambasted Shetty for not resisting Gere's kisses and ordered her to appear in his court May 5, the Press Trust of India news agency said.

Shetty, who is currently on a religious pilgrimage in southern India, was upset by the news, said her spokesman, Dale Bhagwagar.

"Shilpa wishes that people would focus on the real issue, AIDS awareness, and not three pecks on her cheek," Bhagwagar told The Associated Press, adding that she had not yet received any court summons.

Shetty, already well known in India, became an international star after her appearance on the British reality show "Celebrity Big Brother." A fellow contestant, Jade Goody, sparked international headlines by allegedly making racist comments to Shetty. Mobs took to the streets of India to denounce Goody, and Shetty went on to win the competition.

Gere says "end the circus" over public kiss 1 hour, 23 minutes ago


MUMBAI (Reuters) - Asking the media "to end the circus," Hollywood star Richard Gere said on Friday that his kissing of Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty was due to his failure to understand local culture.

An Indian court, acting on a complaint by a local lawyer, described the kiss as an obscene act in public and ordered Gere's arrest. The kiss sparked sporadic protests in India.

Gere twirled Shetty in his arms, arched her over and kissed her several times on the cheek at an event in New Delhi last week to promote AIDS awareness among Indian truckers. Gere has since left India.

"My clumsy attempt at a 'Shall We Dance' dance move was a naive misread of Indian customs," Gere said in statement addressed to "my dear Indian friends" and issued by an AIDS charity he is associated with.

"To be honest, this recent media storm has taken me by complete surprise.

"End the circus around this episode," he said.

The 57-year-old "Pretty Woman" star's posters and straw effigies were burnt in protest in some parts of India, mostly by Hindu vigilante groups, who saw it as an outrage against Shetty's modesty and an affront to Indian culture.

Shetty, the winner of the "Celebrity Big Brother" reality TV show in Britain this year, had said the kiss may have gone a "little overboard" but it was not obscene and the protests made India look regressive.

Many commentators expressed unhappiness at what they said were fringe groups making a major issue out of a harmless peck on the cheek.

Gere said it was not his intention to offend anybody and described the charity event as an evening of celebrating courageous people associated with the fight against HIV/AIDS in India, which has the world's highest HIV caseload.

Although Gere, who also starred in "An Officer and a Gentleman," could face three months in jail or a fine or both for such an offence, he told a U.S. cable channel on Thursday that he did not know anyone who had gone to jail for something like this.

"Me kissing the girl on the cheek was nothing," Gere told cable channel Comedy Central's "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" in New York where he was promoting his latest film, "The Hoax."

Gere, a devout Buddhist, visits India frequently to meet the Dalai Lama, who lives in exile in northern India, and is a vocal supporter of the Tibetan cause as well as being involved with charities dealing with AIDS and orphans in the country.

AMERICAN GIGOLO was HIGH on CRACK, I guess

Report: Judge in Gere case transferred (AP)

NEW DELHI - A judge who issued an arrest warrant against Richard Gere for publicly kissing a Bollywood actress reportedly has been transferred from his job.

Judge Dinesh Gupta, a magistrate in the northwestern city of Jaipur, issued arrest orders last week for both Gere and Shilpa Shetty after the kiss at a public AIDS awareness event in New Delhi earlier in March.

The public display of affection drew an outcry among Hindu hard-liners, with rallies against the actors held in several cities. But the judge's arrest order also drew harsh criticism in India, with some lawyers saying it had no legal merit and made the country look ridiculous.

The Times of India reported Thursday that Gupta was transferred from his post in Jaipur to the small town of Kishangarh several hours away. The paper quoted High Court Commissioner C.P. Singh as saying the transfer was "routine," but he noted that the order came from a state chief justice. Officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

Gupta had issued the arrest warrant following a complaint by a local lawyer, who said the public kiss was obscene. After viewing footage of the event, Gupta called the embrace and kiss "highly sexually erotic."

It was not immediately clear what effect the transfer would have on the arrest warrant. Gupta refused to comment on the transfer, the paper reported.

Gere, 57, apologized for any offense he may have caused in India, where public displays of affection are largely taboo. But he also said the whole controversy was manufactured by a small hardline political party.

Gere, who left shortly after the kiss, is a frequent visitor to India, promoting health issues and the cause of Tibetan exiles. The Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has his headquarters in the northern Indian town of Dharmsala.

Shetty, a well-known actress in India, became an international star after her appearance on the British reality show "Celebrity Big Brother."

A fellow contestant, Jade Goody, sparked international headlines by allegedly making racist comments to Shetty, 31. The comments sparked public outrage in Britain and India and Shetty went on to win the competition.

Shetty appeals to Supreme Court over Gere kiss Mon May 14, 8:27 AM ET


NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty appealed to India's Supreme Court on Monday to drop obscenity charges brought against her for being kissed in public by Hollywood star Richard Gere.

Shetty, the winner of reality television show "Celebrity Big Brother," was at the centre of controversy after Gere twirled her in his arms, arched her over and kissed her several times on the cheek at an anti- AIDS show in New Delhi last month.

A lawyer filed a complaint in a lower court, describing the kiss as an obscene act under Indian laws. The court ordered Gere's arrest, who has since left India.

Two similar cases have been filed in other courts.

"The complaints are a complete abuse of the due process of law," Shetty's lawyer Anand Grover said. "She is being victimized because she is a well-known personality."

The lawyer sought a stay on proceedings against Shetty and appealed for all the cases to be clubbed and transferred to Mumbai, where Shetty lives.

The maximum punishment under Indian law for obscenity is a two-year jail term or fine or both. Gere, too, has sought an end to what he has termed as a media circus.

Shetty shot into limelight after she was bullied and insulted by some of her Big Brother housemates, triggering allegations of racial abuse.

She ultimately went on to win the British TV contest.

Gere, a devout Buddhist, visits India frequently to meet the Dalai Lama, who lives in exile in northern India, and is a vocal supporter of the Tibetan cause as well as being involved with charities dealing with AIDS and orphans in the country.

Gere arrest warrant suspended


NEW DELHI - India's Supreme Court temporarily suspended Tuesday an arrest warrant for actor Richard Gere, who was wanted for allegedly breaking public obscenity laws by kissing Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty.

The court suspended all legal proceedings against the pair until it decides on the proper jurisdiction for the case.

Gere embraced and kissed Shetty on her cheek at a public AIDS awareness event in New Delhi last month, prompting Hindu hard-liners to allege the pair had offended the sensibilities of India's traditionally conservative culture.

The case has grabbed headlines, although the allegations have failed to stir any wider outrage among Indians, most of whom have responded with either mocking bemusement or utter indifference.

Gere, 57, apologized for any offense he may have caused. But he also said the whole controversy was manufactured by a small hard-line political party.

Gere, who left shortly after the kiss, is a frequent visitor to India, promoting health issues and the cause of Tibetan exiles. The Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, has his headquarters in the northern Indian town of Dharmsala.

Shetty, a well-known actress in India, became an international star after her appearance on the British reality show "Celebrity Big Brother."

A fellow contestant, Jade Goody, sparked international headlines by allegedly making racist comments to Shetty, 31. The comments sparked public outrage in Britain and India and Shetty went on to win the competition.