Hindus targeted for religious conversion: Muslim conversion racket coerces Hindus with inducements and threats, denigrates Hindu faith

Case ID : b1c5cad | Location : Bharuch, Gujarat, India | Date of Incident : Tue, 13 November, 2018

Case ID : b1c5cad

Bharuch, Gujarat, India

13 November, 2018

Hindus targeted for religious conversion: Muslim conversion racket coerces Hindus with inducements and threats, denigrates Hindu faith

Predatory Proselytisation

Conversion/ attempts to convert by inducement

Attempting to convert/converting by denigrating Hinduism

Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination

Pattern of targeting Hindus

Harassment, threats, coercion for conversion

Case Summary

In the Amod village of Bharuch district, Gujarat, Hindu villagers, especially from backward communities, were targeted for religious conversion by an organised Muslim conversion racket. The perpetrators offered inducements, denigrated Hinduism, and converted nearly 100 Hindus from 37 families. According to the complaint filed by a Hindu man named Pravinbhai Vasantbhai Vasava, he was converted to Islam in 2018 by two Muslim men named Shabbirbhai Bakerywala and Samadbhai Bakerywala. The accused converted him by offering him inducements and also forcibly changed his name to Salman Vasant Patel, by taking his thumb impression on a paper in a deceptive manner. He was also made to chant Islamic prayers by one Abdul Aziz Patel in an Ibadatgah constructed within the government premises. The whole conversion process was facilitated by a network led by Islamic preacher Varyava Abdul Vahab Mahmood, along with several other individuals, including Shabbirbhai and Samadbhai Bakerywala, Abdul Aziz, Yusuf and Aiyub, who collectively operated a conversion racket targeting Hindu families in Bharuch’s Amod area by offering them material benefits such as new houses, rations, cash and jobs. The conversions were financially supported by a Muslim man named Hasan Tisli and a foreign national, Fefdawala Haji Abdullah, who visited India frequently to aid the conversion network. After being converted, Pravinbhai discovered that others in his community, primarily backward communities, were being pressured into accepting Islam through similar inducements. Some of the newly converted men, including Ajitbhai Chhaganbhai Vasava (renamed Abdul Aziz Patel), were encouraged to convert others in turn, thereby expanding the network of religious subversion. When Pravinbhai resisted and expressed his wish to return to Hinduism, he was subjected to death threats, prompting him to approach the police. An FIR was registered on 14 November 2021 at the Aamod police station under multiple sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act, the Information Technology Act, and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Earlier, only nine accused were named, but subsequently the number expanded to sixteen. Witnesses and digital evidence revealed that the accused not only conducted conversion ceremonies but also used social media platforms and WhatsApp groups to circulate anti-Hindu content, demeaning Hinduism while simultaneously promoting Islam. The Gujarat High Court refused to grant anticipatory bail or quash the FIR, observing that prima facie offences were made out against the accused. As of the date of writing this report, the case remained pending before the court.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

The case has been added to the tracker under the primary category- Predatory proselytisation. Under this, the sub-category selected is- Conversion/ attempts to convert by inducement. Predatory Proselytisation is not just limited to threat, harassment, force and violence, but it also has contours of stealth. In several cases, the Hindu victim is exploited to convert, with non-Hindus taking advantage of their poverty. In such cases, the Hindu victim who is suffering financially is offered monetary benefits, including lucrative offers for jobs, health treatment, education, etc, to induce the victim into changing his/her religion. In such cases, the religious identity of the victim and the aim to disenfranchise him from his faith form the heart of the crime. Also, taking advantage of and exploiting an individual’s economic vulnerabilities is widely acknowledged as exploitation, forms of which are often penalised by law. Such cases therefore are considered religiously motivated hate crimes since the victim’s religious identity forms the very heart of the crime itself. The other subcategory selected is- Attempting to convert/ converting by denigrating Hinduism. In several cases, Hindus are converted or an attempt is made to convert Hindus by denigrating their faith, Hinduism. In such cases, the Hindus associate with the non-Hindu perpetrators often by choice and then, the attempt to convert them by insulting their faith, showing the faith down etc begins. An example of this would be a non-Hindu gathering where the Hindus are attending the gathering of their own free will. However, once they attend the gathering, there is an explicit attempt to convert them by abusing their faith and hailing the faith of the perpetrator. The denigration of the Hindu faith is often based on misrepresentation of the Hindu faith, its doctrine and scriptures and insult to espoused traditions if not blatant lies about Hindu beliefs and ways. Such conversions or attempts at conversions are driven by animosity towards the Hindu faith and are therefore documented as religiously motivated hate crimes. The other subcategory selected is- Proselytisation by grooming, brainwashing, manipulation, or subtle indoctrination. The tertiary category selected is- Pattern of targeting Hindus. 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. The other subcategory selected is: Harassment, threats, coercion for conversion. Harassment covers a wide range of behaviours of an offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behaviour that demeans, humiliates, and intimidates a person, including threats and coercion. Harassment and threats, in this case, find their root on discriminatory grounds which has the effect of nullifying a person’s rights or infringing upon his freedom to exercise his right specifically owing to the victim’s religious identity. Verbal and physical threats and psychological or physical harassment are often used against Hindu victims because they choose to practice their professed religion. Religious harassment also includes forced and involuntary conversions by harassment, threats or coercion. Coercion includes intimidatory tactics like force-feeding a Hindu victim beef to convert to another religion, forceful circumcision etc. In several cases documented, non-Hindu perpetrators or those who harbour specific animosity towards Hinduism, harass victims simply based on their religious identity. Such cases often also include harassment to ensure the Hindu victim abandons his/her professed religion and adopts the religion of the perpetrator. Such cases where Hindu victims are harassed to convert to the perpetrator’s religion are rooted in animosity towards the victim’s religious identity and are therefore documented as religiously motivated hate crimes. This case constitutes a religiously motivated hate crime, as Hindu villagers in Bharuch, including Pravinbhai Vasantbhai Vasava, were targeted for conversion and offered inducements by an organised Muslim conversion racket. Firstly, offering material incentives such as new houses, rations, cash, and jobs to induce conversion demonstrates that these incentives are not acts of kindness or charity. Instead, they are calculated moves to exploit vulnerable Hindus because of their religion. By providing inducements or material support in exchange for conversion, the accused were effectively manipulating and coercing Hindus into changing their religion. Such instances are seen in many cases where conversion rackets target socially and economically vulnerable Hindus to further their agenda of religious conversions. This form of coercion strips people of their agency and dignity and results in coerced conversions. These are not random or isolated incidents, but rather cases deeply rooted in religious animosity towards Hindu victims and their faith. Secondly, the victim’s name was deceitfully changed from Pravinbhai Vasantbhai Vasava to Salman Vasant Patel, representing a symbolic erasure of his Hindu identity. This deliberate renaming aimed to sever the victim’s connection to his ancestral faith and culturally displace him within the Muslim identity, reflecting clear hostility toward his original religion. Such acts are not random or isolated; they form part of a structured and organised effort to undermine Hindu religious identity. Because the core motivation of the act stems from hostility toward the Hindu religion, it meets the threshold of a hate crime. Hence, categorised as a hate crime in the database. Thirdly, the accused also spread content and delivered sermons denigrating Hinduism, including public and digital messaging via social media and WhatsApp groups. This goes beyond religious debate or proselytisation; it constitutes an act of incitement and insult directed at the core beliefs of the Hindu community. Such actions were designed to demean and undermine the faith of Hindus and were intended to create an inferiority complex in the minds of the victims against their own faith. This fosters an environment of hostility and disrespect towards the Hindu community and Hindu deities. These acts of insulting Hinduism stem from Islamic theology, which harbours disdain and hatred for polytheistic faiths, including Hinduism, thereby fostering hatred against them. Such actions make the religiously motivated nature of the crime even more evident. Fourth, when the victim, Pravinbhai Vasantbhai Vasava, expressed his desire to return to Hinduism, he was subjected to death threats, a tactic intended to prevent his return and to coerce compliance. Such acts were not merely personal crimes; they were rooted in a desire to dominate and erase the religious identity of the victim. Since such predatory actions stem from doctrinal animosity towards the Hindu faith and its adherents, this case is being documented as a religiously motivated hate crime. Additionally, the accused converted several Hindus over an extended period. This persistent pattern of targeting Hindus, luring them with incentives, and subjecting them to psychological manipulation and denigration of their faith represents a clear example of a religiously motivated crime. Such actions aim to undermine the religious and cultural identity of Hindus through coercion, manipulation, and unlawful means. These incidents highlight that the conversions were neither isolated nor accidental but formed part of a calculated and targeted strategy to convert Hindus to Islam. The fact that the victims were specifically targeted by an Islamic conversion gang indicates that the conversions were premeditated rather than voluntary. By focusing exclusively on Hindus, these perpetrators profiled vulnerable individuals and systematically worked to erase their Hindu identity. Given that this case meets all parameters of a religiously motivated hate crime under multiple categories, it is being added to the hate crime database of the Hinduphobia Tracker. Disclaimer: Media reports state that around 100 Hindu villagers from 37 Hindu families were converted by the accused, but no gender or age-wise breakdown was provided. For documentation clarity, the Hinduphobia Tracker has used a proportional demographic estimate based on India’s Census 2011 and NFHS-5 (2019–21) rural population data. Accordingly, the 100 participants are estimated as 49 men (49%), 51 women (51%), reflecting typical rural demographic distribution. The data does not include children, as age-wise information was unavailable. It is important to clarify that none of the media sources covering this case have specified the exact date when the victim's ordeal began, though it is mentioned that he was converted in 2018 by the accused. Thus, to document this case, we have used an indicative date—14 November 2018—as a placeholder to represent the beginning of his suffering, aligning with the date of filing the FIR. While media coverage of the incident emerged later, the Hinduphobia Tracker records the incident based on when the victim’s ordeal began, not when it was reported. Since the FIR included sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, thus, some of the victims belonged to SC/ST communities.