Minor Hindu girl deceived by Muslim man posing as Hindu; trapped in prostitution and infected with HIV
Karnal, Haryana, India 
10 March, 2025
Case Summary
In Karnal, Haryana, a 16-year-old Hindu girl was deceived into marriage by a Muslim man named Sheikh, who posed as Ram. He faked his identity to lure the girl into marriage and later forced her into prostitution, which led to her contracting HIV. According to media reports, the girl was lured into marriage by Sheikh while he pretended to be Ram. She later discovered his true identity. Originally from Bihar, the girl was coerced into working at a spa, which was a front for prostitution. The girl reported that she was forced to have sex with one or two people every day, which ultimately resulted in her contracting HIV. One day, after being injured in an accident, she underwent a medical examination and discovered that she was HIV positive. When she informed Sheikh, he still forced her to continue working at the spa. The police raided the spa in Karnal and rescued the minor Hindu girl. She was taken to the Child Welfare Committee, where she recounted her ordeal. She was horrified and in shock. The committee suspected the case to be linked to predatory religious conversion. The committee began searching for her parents. The police registered a case under various sections against Sheikh, the spa operator, and others. The police also began efforts to identify those who had engaged in sexual intercourse with the girl to ensure they could be investigated and treated.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category of: - Crimes against women in relationships and other sexual crimes. Within it, the sub-category selected is: - Man pretends to be Hindu, with the tertiary categories being: - Name changed. 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. This incident qualifies as a hate crime due to the clear presence of religiously motivated targeting, deception, and abuse. The perpetrator deliberately concealed his religious identity to initiate and sustain a relationship with a Hindu girl. This itself is a clear manifestation of bias and malicious intent towards the victim's religion. By concealing his true identity, he exploited her trust, targeting her under false pretences. This indicates a premeditated intent to manipulate her based on her religious background. In cases like these, the tactic of adopting a false Hindu identity to manipulate and "ensnare" a Hindu individual is not just an act of personal betrayal but can also be interpreted as an expression of disdain or disregard for Hinduism and its customs that reflects a deeper animosity towards Hindus and their beliefs. Disclaimer: It is important to clarify that the report does not specify the exact date when the girl's ordeal began. Therefore, for documentation purposes, we have recorded the date based on when the incident was reported in the media.
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
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
