Rehan abducts minor Hindu girl, makes her wear burqa for Nikah - father says accused misled his daughter into the relationship and took her away under false pretences
Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, India 
30 August, 2024
Case Summary
In Jaunpur district, Uttar Pradesh, Rehan alias Mohammad Muslim, was caught attempting to marry a minor Hindu girl. The incident occurred on August 31, 2024, when Rehan brought the 17-year-old girl, dressed in a burqa, to the civil court. Lawyers became suspicious upon noticing the girl's sindoor, a Hindu marital symbol, despite her wearing a burqa. Suspecting foul play, the lawyers stopped the couple and questioned them, discovering that the girl was a minor and had been lured away by Rehan just days earlier on August 29. The girl's father had already filed a police complaint, stating that Rehan had abducted his daughter. Rehan and the minor were taken into custody by the police. According to the victim's father, Rehan had misled the girl into the relationship and taken her away under false pretences. The two reportedly got married using a notarized affidavit. Rehan was arrested, and a case was registered against him under sections 87 and 64 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), along with the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been included in the hate tracker as a religiously motivated hate crime under the prime category- Hate crimes against women in relationships and sexual crimes. Under this, the sub-category chosen is- Brainwashed and/or groomed. Within this, two tertiary categories, namely, 'conversion of minor' and 'family claims grooming of minor', have also been selected. In our database, we have not added incidents where women have converted to another religion of their free will and no allegations of forced/involuntary conversion have been made. However, there are certain cases of conversion where the consent itself is a result of the brainwashing or grooming of a minor by the non-Hindu perpetrator trying to victimise a woman for her Hindu religious identity. The phenomenon of grooming points to non-Hindu perpetrators identifying their Hindu victims’ vulnerabilities and exploiting them over months and sometimes years, to extract the supposed ‘consent’ in order to convert their religion. In most cases of grooming, the victims are minors or the grooming started when the victim was a minor. In other cases of grooming, the non-Hindu perpetrator brainwashes and grooms a minor victim to extract their trust and then proceeds to rape them repeatedly with the intent of converting them to their faith. It is pertinent to understand here that when the victim is a minor, the ‘consent’ to convert or enter into a romantic relationship with an adult itself is redundant – addressed by POCSO. While every case of conversion of a minor and incidents of establishing a physical relationship with a minor by an adult is a crime, for the purpose of this database, a case would be considered a hate crime only if there is a distinct religious angle to the grooming. For example, in the UK, if a Hindu minor is targeted by Pakistani grooming gangs, it would be considered a hate crime because the victims are specifically targeted owing to their non-Muslim religious identity with the perpetrators being Muslim. In other cases, if a Hindu minor is brainwashed into entering a physical relationship with the non-Hindu adult perpetrator and the family alleges grooming/brainwashing of the minor to convert her religion, it would form a part of this database. If the victim is a Hindu adult, the case would form a part of this database only if the victim herself says that she was brainwashed/groomed to convert her religion. However, if the victim is deceased (murdered or otherwise), the case would form a part of this database if her family/friends provided testimony that the victim was brainwashed/groomed to convert her religion. Since these crimes have a distinct religious angle where the victim is being targeted owing to her Hindu religious identity, these cases are considered hate crimes. This case, involving the abduction of a 17-year-old Hindu girl by a Muslim youth named Rehan, can be classified as grooming, particularly given the father's testimony, the victim’s status as a minor, and the accused's efforts to convert her to Islam—evidenced by her appearance in court wearing a burqa, an Islamic veil. Firstly, since the victim is a minor, the question of consent and genuine change of belief is irrelevant from the outset. Minors are especially vulnerable to manipulation as they are still emotionally, cognitively, and socially developing. Their incomplete mental maturity makes them more susceptible to influence and less able to critically assess situations. Furthermore, the law under POCSO makes it clear that "consent" in romantic or religious contexts with a minor is invalid. As such, the conversion of the Hindu minor cannot be considered voluntary, as she lacks the agency to make such decisions. Secondly, the detail that the Hindu girl appeared in court wearing a burqa signals religious coercion. When a minor, like the Hindu girl in this case, is made to adopt Islamic symbols and practices, such as wearing a burqa, it indicates a process of proselytisation. Since she is not in a position to fully understand or resist this pressure, the act becomes a clear instance of religious manipulation, with the objective of conversion. The third important aspect here is the victim's father's testimony. He revealed that the accused had lured his minor daughter into the relationship and taken her away under false pretence, which further confirms the absence of free will. Since the underlying offence in this case is against a minor girl of a specific faith and involves subtle tactics of indoctrination, which obviously stems from a bias against the Hindu faith, this case has been documented as a hate crime.
Victim Details
Total Victim
1
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 0
- Female 1
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 0
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 1
Age Group
- Minor 1
- Adult 0
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
