Activists hold a poster and hug each other during the protest in front of a metro station in Kolkata on Wednesday, backing up the harassed couple. /VCG Photo

The couple was assaulted Monday on a metro train because they were standing too close. They were kicked and punched by strangers. /VCG Photo

Activists also sang songs including “All You Need Is Love.” “I am here because I strongly believe in love. Seeing others support and promote love is giving me strength. This is the Kolkata I grew up in and want to live in. If I meet those attackers, I will give them a heartfelt hug and tell them not to be so angry,” said an activist. /VCG Photo

“More I hear details of the couple being beaten up in my city by the so-called moral police, [the more] I find it shameful and disgusting. We in Kolkata claim to be progressive and sensitive and this is what we reduce the city to! Should shock us all,” said Twitter user @Boria Majumdar. /VCG Photo