Hindu man pressured to convert to Islam, read namaz, and join jamaat by Muslim wife and her family; threatened with fake rape case on refusal to convert
Gadag, Karnataka, India 
23 November, 2024
Case Summary
In Gadag, Karnataka, a Hindu man was coerced into converting to Islam by his Muslim wife and her maternal family. He was also forced to perform namaz and join the Islamic Jamaat, groups of Muslims who invite people to convert to Islam. The accused and her family threatened the man with a false rape case if he refused to convert to Islam and live an Islamic life. The victim was identified as Vishal Kumar Gokavi, a resident of Gandhi Nagar Basti, Betageri area. The accused was a Muslim woman named Tahseen Hosamani. Her family was involved in coercing and harassing Vishal to convert to Islam. According to media reports, Vishal Kumar was in a relationship with Tahseen for three years. After this period, they registered their marriage on 24th November 2024. Vishal’s family then began preparing for a wedding according to Hindu customs, scheduling the ceremony for 5th June 2025. Tahseen initially agreed but later withdrew under pressure from her family and some Muslim leaders. Subsequently, Tahseen insisted on marrying according to Muslim customs (Nikah). Vishal agreed, and on 25th April 2025, the Nikah ceremony was performed as per Muslim traditions. During this time, Vishal’s name was changed without his knowledge. Following the marriage, Tahseen and her mother, Begum Bano, pressured him to perform namaz and join the Jamaat. They also demanded that he renounce Hinduism and convert to Islam. Additionally, Tahseen and her family threatened Vishal that if he refused to convert to Islam, they would have him imprisoned by registering a false rape case against him. As per the victim, Vishal, another Muslim man named Shamsuddin also pressured him to convert to Islam without his consent. Hindu organisations expressed alarm over the situation and demanded strict action against Tahseen and her family. They also urged the local police to investigate and take appropriate measures. Meanwhile, a video of a Muslim wedding circulated widely on social media, bringing further attention to the matter.
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the primary category- Men attacked for being associated with non-Hindu women. Within this, the subcategory selected is- Forced to convert after marriage. The tertiary category selected in this case is- Forced to follow non-Hindu practices. In such cases, a non-Hindu woman marries a Hindu man and the force/pressure against the Hindu man to convert to Islam begins after marriage. In such cases, the marriage is consensual in most cases and often, there is no element of the non-Hindu woman hiding her religious identity. The marriage could be under the Special Marriages Act where neither parties are required to convert their religion for the marriage to be considered legitimate. While the victim in such cases enters matrimony assuming that religious identity is not a barrier, the non-Hindu woman starts to pressure the Hindu man to convert to Islam after marriage. In such cases, there is application of force/pressure by the perpetrator, including, denial of the man’s religious rights. Some of the means by which the man is forced/pressured to convert include forcing/pressurizing the man to involuntarily consume beef, pressurizing/forcing to read the Kalma, forced circumcision, forced to go to the mosque, etc. There are several instances where after marriage, the man voluntarily converts to Islam. Such cases are often argued to be a result of religious brainwashing, however, for the purpose of documenting religiously motivated hate crimes, in the absence of the victim complaining of forced conversion, such cases do not form a part of the database. The other subcategory selected is- Blackmailed to convert. When Hindu men are in a relationship with non-Hindu women, there are cases where the man is blackmailed to convert his religion. Such relationships may be consensual with the religious identity of the non-Hindu man known to the victim, however, there could be cases where the relationship is not consensual and the non-Hindu woman starts blackmailing a Hindu man to convert his religion. In these cases, it is often seen that the Hindu man is blackmailed with intimate photos and/or videos, threats of harm to his family, threats of violence etc. Such cases are driven by specific religious motivations and against the religious identity of the victim and are therefore qualified as hate crimes. The other subcategory selected in this case is- Threatened to convert by family of partner. When Hindu men are in a relationship with non-Hindu women, there are cases where the man faces threats to convert and change his religious identity by the non-Hindu woman or her family. Such relationships may be consensual with the religious identity of the non-Hindu woman known to the victim. Somewhere along the relationship, the non-Hindu woman or her family starts forcing/pressurizing the Hindu man to convert to Islam and also assaults the victim to force him to convert. 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 man 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 man was brainwashed or threatened to convert to Islam. This case exemplifies a hate crime against a Hindu man through a combination of religious coercion, deception, and intimidation. Initially, the relationship between the victim, Vishal, and the main accused, Tahseen, appeared to transcend religious boundaries. This demonstrated that the Muslim perpetrator made the Hindu victim believe that religion was not a primary concern in their relationship. Their three-year relationship suggested mutual affection without overt religious conflict. However, this changed dramatically when Tahseen refused to marry Vishal according to Hindu customs, something she had initially agreed to. Instead, she insisted on marrying in a Nikah ceremony, an Islamic marriage ceremony. It is important to note that, according to Islamic law, a Muslim woman’s Nikah with a non-Muslim man is not considered valid unless the non-Muslim man converts to Islam. Following the Nikah ceremony, Vishal’s name was changed to an Islamic one, that too, without his consent. This was a clear attempt to erase his Hindu identity and enforce Islam on him. The victim was demanded to participate in Islamic religious practices, including performing namaz and attending Jamaat gatherings, events aimed at encouraging conversion to Islam. This coercion directly infringed upon his religious freedom, stripping him of the right to practice his own faith and maintain his religious identity. The use of force in converting him, along with compelling him to observe Islamic rituals, demonstrates an attempt to erase his Hindu identity and impose Islamic practices upon him. This showcases that the Muslim woman initially targeted the Hindu victim with an underlying agenda of religious conversion. This was not an instance of voluntary religious conversion; rather, it was an effort to coerce a Hindu victim to accept Islam. This was not an isolated incident; instead, it was a well-calculated effort designed to strip Vishal of his Hindu faith. Such acts are motivated by hostility towards the Hindu community and its beliefs, with the explicit intention of erasing and destroying the victim's cultural and religious roots. Furthermore, Vishal was subjected to blackmail and threats by Tahseen and her family. They warned him that if he did not convert to Islam and observe Islamic practices, they would falsely accuse him of rape. This intimidation was aimed at coercing the Hindu victim into adopting Islam while simultaneously instilling fear and suppressing any opposition. The involvement of Tahseen’s family in this coercion demonstrates that this was a well-concerted effort to force religious conversion on the Hindu victim through fear and deceit. The use of threat and blackmail to force conversion is a clear demonstration of religious hate, as it targets the victim's religious beliefs and seeks to erase her identity. This case is a glaring example of how deep-seated intolerance can manifest in violent and coercive actions, with the ultimate goal of religious subjugation and domination. The deliberate nature of the deception, where the accused first made the victim feel that his religion was not a concern in their relationship, and the subsequent attempt to force conversion highlights the extent of disdain the accused harboured for the victim's faith, making this a clear case of religiously motivated hate. Disclaimer: Media reports do not specify the exact date when Vishal’s ordeal began, but they note that the couple registered their marriage on 24th November 2024, after three years of relationship. For documentation purposes, an indicative date of 24th November 2024 is used, although the case was reported on 16th July 2025. Media reports do not specify the total number of perpetrators in Tahseen’s family but highlight the involvement of Tahseen’s mother and a man named Shamsuddin, who also pressured Vishal to convert. Therefore, for documentation purposes, we are recording the number of perpetrators as 3.
Victim Details
Total Victim
1
Deceased
0
Gender
- Male 1
- Female 0
- Third Gender 0
- Unknown 0
Caste
- SC/ST 0
- OBC 0
- General 0
- Unknown 1
Age Group
- Minor 0
- Adult 1
- Senior Citizen 0
- Unknown 0
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Muslim Extremists
Perpetrators Range
From 2 To 5
Perpetrators Gender
both
Sources 
