Minor Hindu girl harassed and abducted by Rizwan, family fears forced conversion and prostitution

Case ID : 5954c29 | Location : Bara Banki, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Fri, 3 January, 2025
Case ID : 5954c29
location Bara Banki, Uttar Pradesh, India
date 3 January, 2025
Minor Hindu girl harassed and abducted by Rizwan, family fears forced conversion and prostitution
Predatory Proselytisation
Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination
Family claims grooming
Conversion of minor

Case Summary

A 15-year-old Hindu girl was abducted in Fatehpur, Barabanki. The girl's mother reported the incident to the Superintendent of Police (SP), detailing a history of harassment by a man named Rizwan. Two years prior, Rizwan had kidnapped her minor daughter. A police case was registered at the Fatehpur police station at that time, and the daughter eventually returned home. However, the family faced pressure to drop the charges. On December 27th, while the mother was away, Rizwan, accompanied by Manish, forcibly took the daughter from their house. The mother also stated that the accused were involved in trafficking girls. She further stated that Rizwan was attempting to convert her daughter to another religion. The mother described a larger network involved in these activities. She alleged to have previously filed complaints at the police station, but no action was taken. Following the mother’s complaint to the SP, a new case was registered. The police charged Rizwan, Manish, and Manish's mother, for aiding Rizwan.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under the prime category of Predatory proselytisation. Under this, the sub-category selected is- Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination. Further, two tertiary categories named- 'Family claims grooming' and 'Conversion of minor' have also been selected here, based on case details. Religious brainwashing essentially means the often subtle and forcible indoctrination to induce someone to give up their religious beliefs to accept contrasting regimented ideas. Religious grooming or brainwashing also involves propaganda and manipulation. It involves the systematic effort, driven by religious malice and indoctrination, to persuade “non-believers’ to accept allegiance, command, or doctrine to and of a contrasting faith. Cases of such grooming or brainwashing are far more nuanced than direct threats, coercion, inducement and violence. In such cases, it is often seen that there is repeated, subtle and continual manipulation of the victim to induce disaffection towards their own faith and acceptance of the contrasting faith of the perpetrator. While subtle indoctrination is widely acknowledged as predatory, an element which is often understated in such conversions or the attempts of such conversion is the role of loyalty and trust which might develop between the perpetrator and the victim. Fiduciary relationships are often abused to affect such religious conversion. For example, an educator transmitting religious doctrine of a competing faith to a Hindu student. The Hindu student is likely to accept what the teacher is transmitting owing to existence of the fiduciary relationship. The exploitation of the fiduciary relationship to religiously indoctrinate victims would also be included in this category. Since the underlying animosity towards the victim’s faith forms the basis of predatory proselytization, such cases are considered religiously motivated hate crimes. In this case, the mother of the minor Hindu girl testified that his daughter was kidnapped and coerced into converting to Islam. She also revealed that the accused, Rizwan, had orchestrated the abduction as part of a premeditated plan as he had two years ago also abducted the minor. The mother's statement clearly indicates that religious bias played a central role in the crime, which is why this case has been documented in the tracker as a religiously motivated hate crime. It is also important to mention that since the victim, in this case, is a minor, there was an absence of both consent and a genuine change of conscience. It is a well-established fact that children are more susceptible to manipulation since they are still developing emotionally, cognitively, and socially. Their brains are not fully matured, making them more vulnerable to influence and less capable of critically evaluating information. Moreover, subtle manipulation tactics can be difficult to detect, making it challenging for parents, to identify and address instances of religious manipulation. Consequently, cases involving religious manipulation of minors not only represent an infringement on an individual's religious freedom but also demonstrate a calculated strategy of targeting those who are less able to resist or understand the long-term implications of conversion, making it a significant case of religious-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 1
  • Adult 0
  • Senior Citizen 0
  • Unknown 0
Case Status Background
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Case Status


Complaint registered

Case Status Background
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Perpetrators Details

Perpetrators


Muslim Extremists

Perpetrators Range


One Person

Perpetrators Gender


male

Case Details SVG
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