Hindu woman deceived, exploited and threatened by a Muslim man posing as Hindu

Case ID : aa4ae69 | Location : Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Sun, 6 April, 2025

Case ID : aa4ae69

Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

6 April, 2025

Hindu woman deceived, exploited and threatened by a Muslim man posing as Hindu

Crimes against women in relationships and other sexual crimes

Man pretends to be Hindu

Name Changed

Brainwashed and/or groomed

Rape and sexual assault/harassment

Case Summary

A case of deceit and sexual exploitation was reported from Harigarh, Uttar Pradesh. A Muslim youth named Rais introduced himself as "Raja" and developed a friendship with her under false pretences. Over time, he gained her trust and, under emotional pressure, lured her into a hotel where he forced physical relations upon her. Unbeknownst to the victim, Rais also secretly recorded an obscene video during the incident. When she discovered his real identity, she confronted him, after which he threatened to make the video public if she spoke out. According to the victim, Rais owned a gym called "The Force" near the Haddi Godam crossing, where she had met him around two years earlier while exercising with her brother. During this time, Rais presented himself as a Hindu and began to create a false sense of familiarity under the guise of providing fitness training. Within no time, he started following her and pressuring her into a friendship. Though she initially resisted, repeated emotional coercion led to a conversation that eventually turned into a deceptive and abusive relationship. The victim stated that the assault took place in a hotel, where she was taken on the pretext of a casual outing. Fearful of social stigma and Rais’s threats, the victim remained silent for some time. However, she eventually confided in her family, who then accompanied her to the Rorawar police station to lodge a complaint. Accompanied by BJP city minister Advocate Sanju Bajaj and more than ten party workers, the victim demanded charges be filed under sections related to rape. Sanju Bajaj stated that such incidents reflected a growing trend where Muslim men adopted Hindu names to entrap women, calling it a deliberate and organised conspiracy. In response, the police registered a case against Rais and confirmed that a fair and thorough investigation would be conducted, promising strict action against the accused.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under the category of- Crimes against women in relationships and other sexual crimes. Within this, the first sub-category selected is- Man pretends to be Hindu. Within this, the tertiary category selected is- 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. The second sub-category selected is- Brainwashed and/or Groomed. Within this, the tertiary category selected is- Rape and sexual assault/harassment. In several cases, a Hindu woman and/or minor is sexually harassed and/or assaulted with a religious motive. For example, in a case in Kausambi, UP, a Hindu girl was raped by non-Hindu perpetrators. During the assault, the victim pleaded to 'spare her in the name of Bhagwan'. The perpetrators then asked her to plead in the name of Allah. This clearly indicates a religious motive for the crime and evidences the religious animosity the perpetrators harbored against the victim owing to her religious identity. Such cases would be added to this tertiary category since the religious animosity makes the crime a hate crime. The religious motive of the crime is evident from the fact that the Muslim perpetrator hid his true identity to trap the Hindu victim. 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, and this is why this case has been added here. Further, he not only violated her by raping her but also recorded obscene videos to blackmail her. This act goes beyond mere criminal behaviour; it is a calculated and malicious attack on her religious identity. By assuming a false Hindu identity, the Muslim perpetrator betrays the girl's trust, manipulating her into a situation where he can coerce her into a physical relationship. The use of blackmail to further subjugate her is a clear demonstration of religious hate. The Hindu woman was deliberately singled out due to her religious identity, as is evident from the deceptive tactic employed by the accused, who concealed his Muslim identity by posing as a Hindu. This calculated act of impersonation highlights a clear intent to exploit her trust rooted in shared faith, thereby making her Hindu identity central to the crime. The deceit, followed by exploitation and threats, not only violated her personal and religious dignity but also reflects a larger pattern of targeting Hindu women through religious deception, making this a religiously motivated hate crime.