Case Summary

In Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh, a 16-year-old minor Hindu girl was brainwashed and abducted for religious conversion and marriage by a Muslim man named Mohammad Abbas. The victim's father filed a complaint with the police stating that his daughter was abducted on September 23, 2025, by the Muslim accused, a resident of Pipra village. He further stated that the accused deceived his daughter by offering inducements and on the false promise of marriage, with the explicit intent of converting her religion to Islam. Following the complaint, police registered a case and launched an investigation. Enquiries with locals revealed that the accused was headed towards Tulsipur. Acting swiftly, the police intercepted him near the railway station, where he was arrested while the minor girl was rescued. The Superintendent of Police confirmed that strict action was being taken in the matter and directed further investigation into other individuals connected with Abbas.

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Why it is Hate Crime ?

The case has been added to the tracker under the prime category of- Predatory proselytisation. Under this, the sub-category selected is - Proselytisation by brainwashing, manipulation or subtle indoctrination. Within this, the tertiary category selected is- Conversion of Minor and Family claims grooming. 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 sub-category selected here 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. This case has been added to the tracker because a minor Hindu girl was brainwashed and abducted for religious conversion and marriage by the Muslim accused. It is important to note here that the victim was a minor, which means the element of consent and genuine change of conscience was missing ab initio. Minors, due to their young age and lack of maturity, are particularly vulnerable to manipulation and coercion. They may not have the ability to fully understand the implications of converting to another religion or even consenting to a relationship or marriage, and the Muslim perpetrator purposely targeted and exploited this vulnerability of the victim. Additionally, any supposed consent given by the minor for marriage, elopement or conversion is legally invalid under the POCSO Act. Since this case exemplifies the use of coercion and manipulation to achieve religious conversion, it is a blatant act of religious hate, which is why it has been documented here in the hate tracker. Furthermore, the minor Hindu girl was lured away from her family by the Muslim accused, an act designed to exploit her vulnerability and undermine her sense of safety as a Hindu. By isolating her, the accused intended to convert her religion and marry her. Such an act is a grave violation of her religious autonomy and dignity, targeting her specifically because of her Hindu identity. These actions are not isolated offences but spring from a deep-seated hostility towards Hindus and the intent to erase their faith and customs, making it an instance of a religiously motivated crime. In an effort to lure her, the accused also offered her inducements and made false promises of marriage. Offering incentives or making false promises, especially when directed at vulnerable individuals in need, shows that these incentives are not acts of kindness or charity. Instead, they are calculated moves to exploit vulnerable Hindus because of their religion. By deceiving the victim with inducements and assurances of marriage in an effort to convert her, the accused used manipulation and coercion to strip her of her agency and dignity. This was not an isolated act, but part of a broader pattern where Hindu minors and women are specifically targeted for religious conversion, revealing a deep-rooted animosity directed at Hindu victims. Such actions stem from inherent hostility towards the victim's professed faith since Abrahamic faiths believe that any non-adherent to the faith is subject to being dehumanised till they convert. Therefore, religious conversions, even of minors, are often seen as a badge of honour, totally disregarding the methods used to achieve it. 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. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records incidents according to the date on which the victim’s ordeal commenced. As the abduction of the victim took place on September 23, 2025, this date has been recorded as the incident date.