Wasim befriends a Hindu woman, develops sexual relations, pressures her to convert to Islam
Sehore, Madhya Pradesh, India 
8 September, 2024
Case Summary
In Budhni, Sehore district, Madhya Pradesh, a young woman was raped by a man named Wasim Shah, who also pressured her to convert her religion. The incident came to light after the victim lodged a complaint. Wasim, a resident of Chakaldi village, had been communicating with the girl for months. The girl, who was living in Sehore for her studies, had rented accommodation in the city. On August 25, 2024, Wasim visited the girl in Sehore and took her to a hotel, where he had sex with her under the pretence of marriage. Then pressured her to change her religion. On September 9, Wasim returned and coerced the girl to go with him again, threatening to reveal everything to her family. Out of fear, the girl agreed, and they went to Ichhawar before he left her back in Sehore. After the second incident, the girl confided in her parents and filed a police complaint. The authorities charged Wasim under various sections of Indian laws and the Madhya Pradesh Religious Freedom Act of 2021. Wasim had already been jailed in a separate case, and a production warrant was issued for his custody in this case.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the hate tracker under the prime category- Hate crimes against women in relationships and sexual crimes. Within this, three sub-categories have been chosen. The first is- forced conversion before marriage- In such cases, a non-Hindu man is in a relationship with a Hindu woman when the pressure to convert her religion begins to manifest. The relationship in such cases is mostly consensual and the religious identity of the perpetrator is known to the Hindu woman in the relationship, however, at some point during the relationship, the non-Hindu man starts to force the victim to convert her religion and give up her Hindu religious identity. In such cases, the methods used to force the victim to convert her religion often revolve around force-feeding beef, forcing her to wear hijab, forcing her to read the Kalma or even pressurizing the victim to do ‘Nikah’, which is marriage under Islamic law, with a prerequisite being conversion to Islam. Cases where a Hindu woman consensually converts to Islam in a relationship will be left out of the hate crime database, even though it could be argued in several cases that the conversion was a result of religious brainwashing. The second is- rape for refusal to convert- When Hindu women are in a relationship with non-Hindu men, there are cases where the woman faces pressure/threats/violence to convert and change her religious identity by the non-Hindu man. Such relationships may be consensual with the religious identity of the non-Hindu man known to the victim. Somewhere along the relationship, the non-Hindu man starts pressuring the Hindu woman to convert. In some of these cases, the association could be non-consensual as well or, the religious identity of the non-Muslim man could be previously unknown to the Hindu victim. As the case may be, in such cases, the non-Hindu man forces himself sexually on the Hindu woman when she refuses his advances and pressures to convert her religion. The rape of the woman is often seen as either a punishment for the woman refusing to convert. Such cases are driven by specific religious motivations and against the religious identity of the victim and are therefore qualified as hate crimes. The third is assault or threat upon refusal to convert- When Hindu women are in a relationship with non-Hindu men, there are cases where the woman faces threats or assault after she refuses to convert and change her religious identity owing to pressure/force by the non-Hindu man. Such relationships may be consensual with the religious identity of the non-Hindu man known to the victim. Somewhere along the relationship, the non-Hindu man starts pressurizing the Hindu woman to convert to Islam and upon her refusal, assaults or threatens the victim. Such cases are driven by specific religious motivations and against the religious identity of the victim and are therefore qualified as hate crimes. Cases where the Hindu woman converts to Islam and does not file a complaint about the force or threat, are not considered a part of the hate tracker, even though, it may be argued that the woman was brainwashed or threatened to convert to Islam. In this instance, while the Muslim accused did not hide his identity, the nature of the relationship suggests that the Hindu woman was initially led to believe that her faith would not be a barrier to their romantic involvement. Trusting the accused's word, she entered the relationship, during which the Muslim man took advantage of her physically under the pretence of marriage. However, his true intentions were exposed when he began pressuring her to convert to Islam. To further coerce the victim, he resorted to emotional blackmail, threatening to reveal their relationship to her parents if she refused to comply with his demands for conversion. The details of the case reveal a deliberate targeting of the Hindu woman, with the intent to isolate her from her faith and impose a different religious identity upon her. This manipulation reflects the accused's clear bias against Hinduism. His actions were not just about physical exploitation but were rooted in a desire to strip the victim of her Hindu identity and force her into adopting Islam. Given these elements, the case has been classified as a religiously motivated hate crime, driven by the accused's animosity towards the Hindu faith.
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 0
- Adult 0
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 1
Case Status
Complaint registered
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
