LUCKNOW%2C%20September%2015%3A%20The%20idea%20of%20inter-religion%20marriage%20is%20averse%20to%20the%20right-wing%20Hindu%20brigade%2C%20who%20seem%20to%20be%20ready%20to%20go%20to%20unimaginable%20lengths%20to%20twist%20such%20marriages%20into%20%u2018love-jihad%u2019%20%u2013%20particularly%20if%20that%20is%20a%20case%20of%20a%20Hindu%20girl%20marrying%20a%20Muslim%20man.
%26nbsp%3B
In%20India%u2019s%20most%20populous%20Northern%20state%20of%20Uttar%20Pradesh%2C%20the%20police%20appear%20to%20be%20under%20so%20much%20pressure%20of%20the%20Hindu%20brigade%20that%20they%20have%20taken%20it%20upon%20themselves%20to%20give%20undue%20hype%20to%20%u2018love%20jihad%u2019.
%26nbsp%3B
In%20the%20state%u2019s%20old%20industrial%20hub%20of%20Kanpur%2C%20the%20local%20police%20seems%20to%20have%20literally%20joined%20hands%20with%20the%20Vishwa%20Hindu%20Parishad%20%28VHP%29%2C%20which%20seems%20to%20be%20hell-bent%20on%20labelling%20all%20inter-religion%20marriages%20as%20%u2018love%20jihad%u2019%20%u2013%20essentially%20to%20serve%20their%20long-standing%20political%20agenda%20of%20religious%20polarization.
%26nbsp%3B
What%20has%20reinforced%20VHP%u2019s%20campaign%20is%20a%20strong%20word%20from%20chief%20minister%20Yogi%20Adityanath%2C%20who%20on%20August%2028%20directed%20the%20home%20department%20to%20prepare%20an%20action%20plan%20%u201Cto%20bring%20an%20end%20to%20love%20jihad.%u201D
%26nbsp%3B
And%20once%20such%20a%20directive%20was%20in%20place%20from%20the%20chief%20minister%2C%20%u2018love%20jihad%u2019%20blew%20into%20a%20serious%20menace.%20However%2C%20a%20close%20study%20of%20the%20state%u2019s%20crime%20records%20gave%20a%20completely%20different%20picture.%20In%20all%2C%20there%20were%20barely%20nine%20recently%20reported%20cases%20of%20such%20marriages%20between%20a%20Hindu%20girl%20and%20a%20Muslim%20boy.%20And%20these%20too%20were%20limited%20to%20just%20five%20of%20UP%u2019s%2075%20districts%20-%26nbsp%3B%20Kanpur%2C%20Meerut%2C%20Aligarh%2C%20Lakhimpur-Kheri%20and%20Ghaziabad.
%26nbsp%3B
Significantly%2C%20in%20five%20of%20these%20nine%20cases%2C%20the%20Hindu%20girls%20openly%20refuted%20the%20accusations%20of%20%u2018love%20jihad%u2019%2C%20levelled%20by%20the%20police%2C%20on%20the%20basis%20of%20complaints%20made%20by%20the%20parents%20of%20these%20girls.
Yet%2C%20the%20chief%20minister%u2019s%20media%20adviser%20Mrityunjaya%20Kumar%20was%20quoted%20by%20a%20leading%20national%20English%20daily%2C%20asserting%2C%20%u201Cthere%20are%20increasing%20cases%20of%20love%20jihad%20being%20reported%20from%20different%20parts%20of%20the%20state.%20Thus%20the%20chief%20minister%20instructed%20senior%20Home%20Department%20officials%20to%20prepare%20a%20plan%20to%20stop%20such%20incidents.%u201D
%26nbsp%3B
What%20turned%20out%20during%20the%20course%20of%20the%20investigations%20was%20that%20complaints%20were%20usually%20made%20by%20angry%20parents%2C%20for%20whom%20the%20idea%20of%20inter-religion%20marriage%20was%20outrageous%20and%20therefore%20thoroughly%20unacceptable.%20So%20they%20found%20it%20convenient%20to%20come%20up%20with%20stories%20about%20their%20daughters%20being%20enticed%20by%20Muslim%20boys.
%26nbsp%3B
According%20to%20the%20police%20records%2C%20there%20were%20only%20two%20recent%20cases%20where%20the%20girls%20stood%20by%20the%20allegations%20of%20%u201Ccheating%2C%20enticement%20and%20harassment%u201D%2C%20made%20by%20their%20parents.
%26nbsp%3B
The%20most%20glaring%20such%20case%20was%20registered%20at%20Kanpur%u2019s%20Kidwai%20Nagar%20Police%20Station%2C%20where%20a%20lady%20Satrupa%20Yadav%2C%20lodged%20a%20complaint%20alleging%20kidnapping%20of%20her%2022-%20year%20old%20daughter%20Shalini%20by%20a%20Muslim%20neighbour%20Faisal.%20The%20complainant%20had%20even%20accused%20Faisal%20of%20looting%20Rs.%2010%20lakhs%20from%20the%20parents%20of%20the%20girl%2C%20who%20he%20allegedly%20took%20away%20at%20gunpoint.
%26nbsp%3B
A%20police%20team%20was%20dutifully%20sent%20on%20a%20manhunt.%20They%20discovered%20Shalini%20from%20a%26nbsp%3B%20house%20in%20a%20locality%20under%20Chandni%20Mahal%20police%20station%20in%20Delhi%2C%20where%20she%20was%20found%20living%20with%20Faisal.%20The%20Kanpur%20police%20took%20them%20into%20custody.%26nbsp%3B%20But%2C%20Shalini%20managed%20to%20move%20a%20petition%20before%20the%20Delhi%20High%20Court%2C%20which%20directed%20the%20concerned%20police%20station%20to%20have%20her%20statement%20recorded%20before%20a%20magistrate.%20And%20when%20it%20came%20to%20that%2C%20mind%20you%2C%20Shalini%20flatly%20refuted%20the%20allegations%20made%20by%20her%20parents%2C%20making%20it%20loud%20and%20clear%20that%20she%20had%20married%20Faisal%20entirely%20out%20of%20her%20own%20sweet%20will%20and%20that%20she%20wanted%20to%20live%20with%20him%20only.%20She%20stated%20that%20all%20the%20allegations%20made%20by%20her%20parents%20were%20false%20and%20concocted.%20But%20the%20case%20is%20yet%20to%20be%20closed%20by%20the%20Kanpur%20police.
%26nbsp%3B
%26nbsp%3B
There%20is%20no%20denying%20that%20there%20are%20isolated%20incidents%20where%20a%20Muslim%20boy%20Shamshad%20enticed%20a%20young%20Hindu%20widow%20Priya%20into%20marriage%2C%20by%20falsely%20projecting%20himself%20as%20a%20Hindu.%20Priya%20also%20took%20her%20minor%20daughter%20Kashish%20with%20her%20to%20Shamshad%u2019s%20home%20in%20his%20village%2C%20under%20Partapur%20police%20station%20in%20Ghaziabad%20district.%26nbsp%3B
There%20was%20this%20case%20of%20a%20Muslim%20youth%20who%20managed%20to%20fool%20a%20young%20woman%2C%20who%20chose%20to%20elope%20with%20him%20along%20with%20her%20minor%20daughter%20in%20a%20village%20under%20Partapur%20police%20station%20in%20Ghaziabad%20district%2C%20in%20January%202020.%26nbsp%3B%20However%2C%20after%20getting%20her%20converted%20to%20Islam%20and%20performing%20a%20proper%20%u2018Nikah%u2019%20with%20her%2C%20he%20murdered%20both%20of%20them%20and%20buried%20them%20in%20his%20own%20house.%20The%20case%20was%20taken%20up%20by%20Priya%u2019s%20friend%2C%20who%20took%20it%20to%20the%20logical%20conclusion%20and%20got%20Shamshad%20sent%20to%20jail.
%26nbsp%3B
There%20were%20two%20other%20cases%20of%20duping%20of%20young%20girls%20by%20Muslim%20youth%20in%20Meerut%20district%20and%20the%20accused%20were%20brought%20to%20book.%20However%2C%20%26nbsp%3Bwhat%20was%20strange%20that%20even%20in%20cases%20where%20the%20girls%20had%20deposed%20before%20the%20magistrate%20that%20they%20wanted%20to%20live%20with%20the%20man%20of%20their%20choice%20with%20whom%20they%20had%20chosen%20to%20get%20married%2C%20the%20police%20was%20not%20ready%20to%20give%20them%20clearance.
%26nbsp%3B
One%20such%20glaring%20case%20was%20spotted%20in%20Kanpur%20where%20the%20matter%20went%20up%20to%20the%20zonal%20inspector%20general%20of%20police%20Mohit%20Agarwal.%20And%20far%20from%20settling%20the%20issue%20on%20the%20basis%20of%20facts%2C%20Agarwal%20has%20constituted%20a%20nine-member%20team%20under%20a%20deputy%20superintendent%20of%20police%20to%20now%20investigate%20all%20cases%20of%20Hindu-Muslim%20marriages%20over%20the%20past%20two%20years.
%26nbsp%3B
%u201CThe%20probe%20would%20find%20out%20if%20there%20is%20any%20interconnection%20between%20different%20Muslim%20youths%20who%20have%20entered%20into%20wedlock%20with%20Hindu%20girls.%20The%20special%20police%20team%20would%20also%20see%20if%20such%20youth%20were%20being%20funded%20from%20abroad.%20We%20will%20go%20into%20their%20call%20log%20records%20.%u201D
%26nbsp%3B
Agarwal%2C%20who%20had%20shot%20into%20the%20spotlight%20recently%20for%20his%20role%20in%20the%20shoddily%20carried%20out%20encounter%20of%20gangster%20Vikas%20Dubey%2C%20is%20known%20for%20his%20proximity%20to%20VHP%20activists%2C%20who%20were%20clearly%20hell-bent%20on%20proving%20their%20allegations%20about%20increasing%20love%20jihad%20right.%26nbsp%3B
%26nbsp%3B
Dy%20SP%20Vikas%20Kumar%20Pandey%2C%20who%20heads%20this%20special%20police%20team%2C%20%26nbsp%3Bhas%20gone%20to%20the%20extent%20of%20asserting%20that%20he%20would%20even%20try%20to%20find%20out%20whether%20any%20middle-man%20was%20involved%20in%20fixing%20the%20Hindu-Muslim%20marriages%20in%20question.%20Even%20others%20involved%20in%20the%20probe%20seemed%20to%20be%20bent%20upon%20somehow%20finding%20fault%20with%20the%20Muslim%20youth%20so%20that%20they%20could%20be%20booked%20and%20punished.%26nbsp%3B
%26nbsp%3B
Evidently%2C%20the%20attitude%20of%20the%20cops%20is%20a%20serious%20warning%20for%20all%20those%20who%20have%20entered%20into%20Hindu-Muslim%20matrimonial%20alliances%26nbsp%3B%20-%20particularly%20over%20the%20recent%20years.%20And%20truly%2C%20tough%20times%20ahead%20for%20those%20seeking%20fulfilment%20of%20their%20love%20through%20inter-religious%20wedlocks%20in%20the%20land%20called%20Uttar%20Pradesh.
