Hindu woman trapped under pretext of marriage, exploited and pressured to convert to Islam by Muslim man posing as Hindu; wore kalava and tilak for deception
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India 
10 August, 2025
Case Summary
In Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, a Hindu woman was lured into a relationship by a Muslim man named Furqan, who adopted the false Hindu identity of Raj. To deceive her, he wore Hindu religious symbols such as Kalava and Tilak. Following this, the victim was subjected to blackmail, threats, physical assault, and pressure to convert to Islam. According to media reports, the Hindu victim, a 25-year-old woman from Prayagraj, had been residing in the Chinhat area after her father passed away. Forced to leave her studies due to financial hardship, she started a small food shop in the year 2024. Here, she met the accused, Furqan, who then presented himself as Raj, a supposed resident of Barabanki. As their acquaintance deepened, the Muslim accused proposed marriage and lured her into a romantic relationship. He also secretly captured explicit photographs and videos of the woman. Around Diwali 2024, during a visit to Bada Imambara, the accused began pressuring her to convert to Islam. It was then she discovered his real name was Mohammad Furqan. When she refused to convert, Furqan responded with violence. He beat her, strangled her, and threatened to kill her. On 7th August 2025, Furqan entered her room and threatened to leak her private photos and videos if she did not convert. On 11th August 2025, while she was out, he broke the lock to her room and stole Rs 25,000. Having endured these ordeals, the victim approached the police and filed a formal complaint. Inspector Dinesh Chandra Mishra, Chinhat police, confirmed that the case had been registered, and Mohammad Furqan was being searched by the authorities.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category- Crimes against women in relationships and other sexual crimes. Within this, the subcategory selected is- Man pretends to be Hindu. The tertiary categories selected are- 'Name Changed' and 'Wears symbols of Hinduism'. 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. The other subcategory selected is- Brainwashed and/or Groomed. The tertiary category selected is- Rape and sexual assault/harassment. In our database, we have not added incidents where women have converted to another religion of their free will and no allegations of forced/involuntary conversion have been made. However, there are certain cases of conversion where the consent itself is a result of the brainwashing or grooming of a minor by the non-Hindu perpetrator trying to victimise a woman for her Hindu religious identity. The phenomenon of grooming points to non-Hindu perpetrators identifying their Hindu victims’ vulnerabilities and exploiting them over months and sometimes years, to extract the supposed ‘consent’ in order to convert their religion. In most cases of grooming, the victims are minors or the grooming started when the victim was a minor. In other cases of grooming, the non-Hindu perpetrator brainwashes and grooms a minor victim to extract their trust and then proceeds to rape them repeatedly with the intent of converting them to their faith. It is pertinent to understand here that when the victim is a minor, the ‘consent’ to convert or enter into a romantic relationship with an adult itself is redundant – addressed by POCSO. While every case of conversion of a minor and incidents of establishing a physical relationship with a minor by an adult is a crime, for the purpose of this database, a case would be considered a hate crime only if there is a distinct religious angle to the grooming. For example, in the UK, if a Hindu minor is targeted by Pakistani grooming gangs, it would be considered a hate crime because the victims are specifically targeted owing to their non-Muslim religious identity with the perpetrators being Muslim. In other cases, if a Hindu minor is brainwashed into entering a physical relationship with the non-Hindu adult perpetrator and the family alleges grooming/brainwashing of the minor to convert her religion, it would form a part of this database. If the victim is a Hindu adult, the case would form a part of this database only if the victim herself says that she was brainwashed/groomed to convert her religion. However, if the victim is deceased (murdered or otherwise), the case would form a part of this database if her family/friends provided testimony that the victim was brainwashed/groomed to convert her religion. Since these crimes have a distinct religious angle where the victim is being targeted owing to her Hindu religious identity, these cases are considered a hate crime. The other subcategory selected 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. In such cases, typically, two patterns emerge. First, when the relationship is 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. The second is when the woman gets into a marriage with the man pretending to share her faith. Later, when the truth is revealed, the man starts pressuring the woman to convert her religion and give up her religious identity. In both the situations, 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 other subcategory selected 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. The other subcategory selected is- Blackmailed to convert. When Hindu women are in a relationship with non-Hindu men, there are cases where the woman is blackmailed to convert her religion, owing to her religious identity of being a Hindu. Such relationships may be consensual with the religious identity of the non-Hindu man known to the victim, however, there could be cases where the relationship is not consensual and the non-Hindu man starts blackmailing a Hindu woman to convert her religion. In these cases, it is often seen that the Hindu woman is blackmailed with intimate photos and/or videos, threats of harm to her or her family, threats of violence etc. Such cases are driven by specific religious motivations and against the religious identity of the victim and are therefore qualified as hate crimes. In this case, the Hindu woman was deceived into a relationship by a Muslim man pretending to be Hindu. After this, she was sexually exploited and then was pressured to convert to Islam. Firstly, the Muslim perpetrator's act of deception by posing as a Hindu itself demonstrates a clear bias and malicious intent towards the victim’s religion. By hiding his true identity, the Muslim man manipulated the Hindu woman's trust and targeted her under false pretences, indicating a premeditated effort to exploit the woman based on her religious background. Additionally, he wore Hindu religious symbols like Kalava and Tilak to affirm his fake Hindu identity. This act of deception constituted a direct violation of her right to informed consent regarding whom she chooses to marry and be involved romantically, as well as an infringement upon her religious beliefs. Thus, the perpetrator’s deliberate decision to hide his religious identity strongly underscores the religious motive behind this crime. In such instances, identity concealment is not just a deceptive tactic for personal reasons but a calculated strategy rooted in religious profiling and targeting. The accused was aware that the victim, being Hindu, would likely refuse his advances if she knew his real identity, and he circumvented this by lying, which directly points to a religiously driven intent. This deception reflects a larger pattern where Hindu women are specifically singled out using false identities, often with coercion or conversion in mind. Such targeted victimisation based on religion not only exposes a deeper animosity toward Hindus and their beliefs. Secondly, the use of Hindu religious symbols to perpetrate such actions clearly reveals the religious motivation behind the crime. These symbols, which hold profound significance for Hindus, were exploited as instruments of deception. Such actions result in undermining and desecration of sacred religious symbols revered by Hindus, making it an instance of a religiously motivated crime. Thirdly, through calculated deception, the Hindu woman was sexually exploited by the Muslim perpetrator, who falsely promised marriage. This was not a random act of exploitation; rather, it was a purposeful assault rooted in religious bias, singling out and violating a Hindu woman because of her faith. Such acts of manipulation and religious profiling unmistakably highlight the religiously targeted foundation of the crime. Once the woman realised the perpetrator’s true identity, she was pressured to convert to Islam. This revealed that the deception and abuse were elements of a premeditated scheme to achieve forced religious conversion. The act of forcing the victim to convert directly infringed on the woman’s fundamental right to practise her own religion and amounted to a deliberate attempt to strip away her Hindu identity. The offender’s behaviour embodied deep-seated hostility and contempt towards Hindus and their faith, making this a textbook case of a religiously motivated offence. After refusing to convert, the victim endured threats and physical assault for standing firm in her faith. The use of violence and intimidation was intended to break her spirit and force compliance. The perpetrator’s willingness to go to extreme lengths to coerce conversion further demonstrates a clear pattern of hostility towards Hinduism and the Hindu community. Further, the woman faced blackmail over obscene photographs and videos; a cruel tactic to impose religious conversion and force her to renounce her beliefs. Such conduct is fuelled by overt animosity towards Hindus, intending to strip the woman of her Hindu identity. This serves as a stark illustration of religiously motivated crime. Given that this case meets multiple parameters of a religiously motivated crime, it is being included in the hate crime database. Disclaimer: Media reports do not state the exact date when the victim’s ordeal commenced. However, it is mentioned that the accused threatened her on 11th August 2025. Therefore, for documentation purposes, 11th August 2025, is being used as an indicative date of the incident for this case. While media coverage surfaced on 17th August 2025, the Hinduphobia Tracker records incidents based on when they occur, not when they are reported.
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 1
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
