A Muslim youngster, 21 years old, flew from Bengaluru to LakhimpurKheri to meet a Hindu girl whom he had befriended online. He was beaten up, taken to a police station on Sunday evening, and detained overnight.
A local right-wing outfit persistently insisted that anti-conversion (Love Jihad) charges be pressed against him. The man works as an engineer in Bengaluru. He told them that he met the girl online and became friends with her.
On the occasion of her birthday, he flew down to meet her, along with a soft toy, some chocolates, and sweets, and headed for her house in Lakhimpur Kheri.
After reaching there, he introduced himself to her parents, and then the trouble began. Neighbors assembled, and some right-wing outfit members chipped in.
The victim issued a statement, “They started beating me, one of them called the police and insisted that it was a case of ‘forced conversion’. I was taken to the police station and I showed them the flight ticket and the gifts,”.
SHO of the area where he was detained, Sadar Kotwali, Suneel Kumar said, “The girl’s family said they felt threatened by him. But they did not want to file a complaint so no FIR was registered. We have challenged him under Section 151 of the CrPC (to prevent the commission of the cognizable offense). He was produced in the court of the sub-divisional magistrate on Monday, who ordered his release on a personal bond.”
Infamously referred to as the “love jihad” laws, a reference to the conspiracy theory floated by Hindutva supporters that Muslim men are courting Hindu women, only to get them to convert to Islam, the ordinances provide for jail terms as high as 10 years if the marriages are found to have been effected with the intention of converting the women. And, the marriages will also stand canceled.
