Hindu widow and her children forced to convert to Islam, wear burqa and read Kalma by her Muslim live-in-partner
Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, India 
1 December, 2024
Case Summary
In Muzaffarnagar, UP, Mohammad Wasim converted a Hindu widow along with her children to Islam. The widow Komal was renamed Ayesha. Her daughter Kumkum was renamed Alia and her son Aryan was converted and renamed Bilal. The mother-daughter duo were forced to wear burqas while both the children were also forced to read Kalma. The accused also beat up the victim and her children for refusing to comply with his demands. He eventually also pressured the victim to sell off her properties. The victim said that after her husband's death, Wasim, who came in contact with her, deceived her by promising to marry her. She started living with him. For the last 8 years, the duo have been living together. In these eight years, the accused constantly pressured her to sell her house and other properties in the city and give him money. When she refused, the accused threatened and beat her. Eventually, she was forced to sell two properties and give them to the accused, who swindled all her money. Further, the accused also tried to force her into prostitution. According to the victim, the accused has been forcibly having physical relations with her for the last eight years by promising to marry her.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case clearly exemplifies a religiously motivated hate crime driven by the systematic exploitation and coercion of a Hindu woman and her children. Based on details, the case has been added to the tracker under the prime category of- Crimes against women in relationships and other sexual crimes. Within this, three sub-categories have been selected. The first is- Forced conversion before marriage and within this, two tertiary categories have also been selected, which are- 'Forced to follow non-Hindu religious practices' and 'Forced to wear hijab'. 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. The relationship in such cases is mostly 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. In such cases, 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 second sub-category relevant here 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 third sub-category under which the case has been placed is- Torture of family to force woman to convert. When Hindu women are in a relationship with non-Hindu men, there are cases where the woman is forced to convert her religion. Several methods are used for such forced conversion. The non-Hindu man is often documented to issue threats and even employ violence. One of the ways used by such perpetrators is threatening and/or torturing the family members of the Hindu woman to pressure her to convert. The perpetrators in such cases issue threats to harm or torture the family of the woman. In some cases, there is also violence directed towards the family to force the Hindu woman to convert. Such crimes aim to blackmail the victim into changing her religion by inducing fear of harm to her family. Such cases are driven by specific religious motivations and against the religious identity of the victim and are therefore qualified as hate crimes. Here, the victim, Komal, was deceived under the pretext of marriage, and once she was living with him, Wasim initiated the forced conversion of her and her children, renaming them and imposing Islamic practices on them, such as wearing burqas and reciting the Kalma. When the family resisted these coercive demands, Wasim resorted to assault and threats, using violence to break their will and force compliance. The victim was further tortured through financial coercion, as Wasim pressured her to sell her properties and hand over the proceeds. This pattern of abuse was not only religious but also involved manipulation, threats, and violence to exert control over the victim's life, illustrating the extremity of the crime. The forced conversion before marriage, the assault upon refusal to comply, and the relentless torture of the family to achieve the conversion, all point to a hate-driven agenda aimed at undermining their religious identity and coercing them into adopting a different faith. The use of such manipulation and violence to enforce religious affinity underscores the perpetrator's profound hatred and intolerance toward the victim's faith and beliefs, which is why this case has been added to the hate tracker.
Victim Details
Total Victim
3
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 1
- Female 2
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 0
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 3
Age Group
- Minor 0
- Adult 1
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 2
Case Status
Complaint filed
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
