Shamli, UP: Junaid poses as Hindu on Instagram and lures Hindu girl from Surat
Shamli, Uttar Pradesh, India 
15 July, 2024
Case Summary
In Surat, a Muslim youth named Junaid posed as Rajesh on Instagram to befriend a Hindu girl, ultimately bringing her to Jalalabad, Shamli, UP. After this Junaid deactivated his account. When members of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) demanded his arrest, the police detained Junaid and informed the girl’s relatives. Junaid, who works at a salon in Delhi, befriended the girl online and lured her. His family opposed the relationship, leading Junaid's father, Jani, to inform the police. VHP members, including district chief Deepak, confirmed that Junaid hid his Muslim identity from the girl. The girl’s relatives traveled from Surat after being notified. Police took Junaid into custody, pending a formal complaint from the girl’s family. Jani revealed his son threatened him and used a fake Aadhaar card to falsify his age. Authorities continued investigating the fraudulent document. VHP leader Yashvir Maharaj called for strict action against Junaid, while police examined his mobile phone for further evidence.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
When a non-Hindu man pretends to be a Hindu to deceive a Hindu woman into a relationship, the act is seen as triggered by malafide intentions. In some cases, the woman eventually accepts the man’s original religious identity and converts after the man’s identity is revealed. These cases could be argued as cases of religious brainwashing and a result of the pressure a woman feels after getting into a relationship with a man. The woman, it can be argued, also changed her religious identity because of the stigma she believes she might face if she chooses to walk out of a deceptive relationship. However, for the purpose of documenting hate crimes, the cases in this subcategory are limited to those where there is explicit violence aimed at religious conversion against the wishes of the victim (force-feeding beef, blackmailing with intimate videos, rape on refusal to convert, etc), or if the woman herself complains of the man’s religious deception. In such cases, it is established that the deception of the non-Hindu man had a specific aim of religious conversion or targeting of the victim due to her Hindu religious identity, therefore, making it a religiously motivated 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 0
- Adult 0
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 1
Case Status
Arrested
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
