Hindu girl disappears after sustained online and in person pressure from conversion operatives

Case ID : 8da19aa | Location : Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Wed, 19 March, 2025

Case ID : 8da19aa

Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

19 March, 2025

Hindu girl disappears after sustained online and in person pressure from conversion operatives

Undecided cases

Abduction of minor

Case Summary

A 19-year-old girl was targeted by a conversion network operating in the Jethwara and Fatanpur areas, Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh, according to the complaint filed by her mother. The woman, who lives in a village under the Jethwara police station, stated that two men from a village in the Fatanpur region had been attempting for several months to lure her daughter with inducements and pressure her to accept Christianity. She said the men first approached and influenced the girl around seven to eight months ago, after which she retrieved her with the help of relatives. However, according to her statement, the same individuals again took the daughter away on 18 November 2025 with the intention of converting her. She told the police that the men had been running an organised network and had previously tried to persuade the girl to convert through online communication as well. The district also witnessed tension linked to the case. Residents in Jethwara and Sangipur approached the police with similar concerns about individuals associated with Changai Sabha gatherings, accusing them of making young Hindu women disappear. Jethwara police officials, including acting station in charge Balram Singh and SO Vijaykant Satyarthi, confirmed that the mother’s complaint had been received. They said that an investigation was underway and that efforts were being made to trace the missing girl.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

In this case, a Hindu girl was targeted over several months by individuals accused of operating a covert conversion network in the Jethwara and Fatanpur regions. The pattern described by the mother indicates sustained pressure, inducements and repeated attempts to draw the girl away from her home for the purpose of religious conversion. The persistence of contact, the deliberate use of online communication and the eventual removal of the girl show a level of planning that raises legitimate concerns about predatory intent, especially because the victim’s Hindu identity was known to the accused throughout. At the same time, the girl is nineteen years old, and therefore legally an adult with full autonomy over personal decisions relating to movement, relationships and religious choice. The law recognises her right to elope, convert or associate with anyone she chooses, provided her actions are free from force, deception or coercion. Her age introduces an essential element of uncertainty: although grooming, manipulation or inducement cannot be ruled out, the possibility of voluntary movement also cannot be dismissed without her direct statement. This ambiguity is compounded by the fact that the complaint hinges solely on the mother’s account. While her testimony is important and must be taken seriously, it cannot be treated as conclusive in the absence of the girl’s own version of events. Emotional distress, fear for a daughter’s safety, and social pressure are factors that naturally influence a parent’s interpretation of such incidents. Without independent confirmation from the victim, the underlying motivation remains open to scrutiny. Accordingly, the case has been added to the Undecided database. If future information confirms coercion, deception, or a clear religious motive, or if a statement from the victim clarifies the circumstances, the case will be reviewed and reclassified into the hate crime database. Disclaimer: Media reports indicate that the victim’s ordeal began around eight months before 20 November 2025, but no exact date or month has been provided. For documentation purposes, the Hinduphobia Tracker has assigned a placeholder date of 20 March 2025 to represent the beginning of the victim’s suffering. As per our methodology, the Tracker records incidents based on when the harm to the Hindu victim first began rather than the later date on which the case was reported.