Hindu woman deceived for sexual exploitation by Muslim man posing as Hindu; wore kalawa and tilak to manipulate her

Case ID : e274935 | Location : Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, India | Date of Incident : Thu, 20 February, 2025

Case ID : e274935

Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, India

20 February, 2025

Hindu woman deceived for sexual exploitation by Muslim man posing as Hindu; wore kalawa and tilak to manipulate her

Crimes against women in relationships and other sexual crimes

Man pretends to be Hindu

Name Changed

Wears symbols of Hinduism

Case Summary

In the Civil Lines area of Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, a Hindu woman was deceived and raped repeatedly by a Muslim man named Khalil, who posed as a Hindu to trap her. According to the complaint filed by the victim, who is a widow, she went to Bajpur, Uttarakhand, for treatment of her diabetes about six months ago. There, she came into contact with a woman named Anita, and they started talking to each other on the phone. About four months ago, Anita called the victim and told her that she was sending a boy to her to deliver ghee. Then, the accused called her and told her that he was sent by Anita and was standing at the railway station. The victim went to meet the accused. The accused introduced himself as a Hindu man named Suresh, and he had a tilak on his forehead and wore a kalawa on his wrist. The accused also told her that his wife had died and he was also a widower. They gradually became friends, and the accused one day took her to a hotel where he sexually exploited her. He then insisted that she arrange a separate rented room so that he could visit more freely. The woman agreed and got him a rented room in Civil Lines, where he sexually exploited her on multiple occasions. When the victim resisted, he made false promises of marriage but later abandoned her. When the victim called the accused from another number, the accused introduced himself as Khalil, calling himself a Muslim. As of the date of writing this report, an FIR was registered by the police against Khalil and Anita, based on the victim's complaint. The investigation was ongoing.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category of: - Crimes against women in relationships and other sexual crimes. Within it, the sub-category selected is: - Man pretends to be Hindu, with the tertiary category being: - Name changed and Wears symbols of Hinduism. 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. This case has been added to the tracker because a Hindu woman was deceived and raped by a Muslim man who posed as a Hindu to trap her. The perpetrator deliberately concealed his religious identity to initiate and sustain a relationship with the victim. By assuming a fabricated Hindu identity—changing his name, donning sacred symbols like the kalava and tilak—the accused knowingly exploited the woman's religious faith to gain her trust. 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. In Hinduism, the Tilak and Kalawa hold deep religious, cultural, and spiritual significance. It symbolises protection, blessings, unity, and commitment to spiritual and ethical principles. Its use across various rituals and ceremonies underscores its importance in the Hindu way of life. By exploiting religious symbols and rituals sacred to Hindus, the Muslim accused not only betrayed the woman's trust but also showed a profound disrespect for her faith. Furthermore, the accused exploited the woman’s emotional vulnerability, as she was a widow, thus, socially and emotionally more susceptible to manipulation. He pretended to share her faith as well as told her that his wife had died, in an attempt to gain emotional sympathy and lure her into a relationship. By pretending to share similar life tragedies, the accused created a false sense of emotional intimacy and solidarity with the Hindu woman. In reality, he never wanted a genuine relationship with the Hindu woman; instead, all of this was carefully planned to trap her into a relationship for sexual exploitation. However, when someone uses Hindu religious symbols and false identity to deceive and harm a woman, it’s not just a personal betrayal; it becomes an act of religiously motivated abuse. It reflects both hatred towards women and hostility towards the Hindu community and its beliefs. Thus, this case has been added to the tracker. Disclaimer: The victim's ordeal began when she met the accused about four months ago, though no exact date or month is provided. To document this case, we have used an indicative date—February 21, 2025—as a placeholder to represent the beginning of her suffering. While media coverage of the incident emerged on June 21, 2025, the Hinduphobia Tracker records the incident based on when the victim’s ordeal began, not when it was reported.