Hindu Minor Girl lured and abducted by a Muslim Man, family fears forced conversion

Case ID : aa4b0b8 | Location : Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Mon, 5 May, 2025

Case ID : aa4b0b8

Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India

5 May, 2025

Hindu Minor Girl lured and abducted by a Muslim Man, family fears forced conversion

Predatory Proselytisation

Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination

Family claims grooming

Conversion of minor

Case Summary

In the Umbrella Kotwali area of Mathura, a minor Hindu girl was kidnapped by a Muslim man identified as Shah Rukh Khan. According to the complaint filed by the victim’s father, the accused lured the girl into a relationship under false pretences, and there is a strong apprehension within the family that she may be subjected to religious conversion. For two days following the disappearance, villagers attempted to pressure Shah Rukh’s family to return the girl, but with no resolution, the family then proceeded to file an official complaint with the police. The situation escalated as a large gathering of local residents, along with activists from Hindu organisations, assembled at the Umbrella Kotwali police station to demand swift and decisive action. In response, the police registered a case based on the father's complaint. As of the date of this report, a search operation was ongoing. Police officials confirmed that all necessary efforts were being made to ensure the safe recovery of the minor girl and that all possible leads were being pursued as part of the investigation.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category of: - Predatory proselytisation. Within it the sub-category selected is: - Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination, with the tertiary category being: - Family claims grooming and Conversion of minor. 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. This case has been added to the tracker because a minor Hindu girl was kidnapped by a Muslim man named Shahrukh Khan. According to the victim’s family, the girl was lured into a deceptive romantic relationship, and the family was also concerned about their daughter being converted to Islam. The details of this case reveal that the Hindu victims were minors, indicating a lack of 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 mature, making them more vulnerable to influence and less capable of critically evaluating information. Moreover, subtle manipulation tactics can be difficult to detect, especially when employed by trusted authority figures in positions of influence. This makes 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 religiously motivated hate crime. For this reason, this case has been added to the tracker. These actions reflect a broader pattern of Muslims targeting non-Muslim minors for religious conversion, which aligns with the criteria for religiously motivated hate crimes outlined in the database. Such crimes go beyond isolated personal offences; they point to a disturbing trend of eroding the cultural and religious fabric of non-Muslims, especially Hindus, through manipulation, coercion or sexual exploitation. Therefore, this is not merely a case of abduction or grooming but one with serious communal and ideological implications.