Hindu female journalist forced to convert to Islam by Muslim news channel owner

Case ID : f6644fb | Location : East Delhi, Delhi, India | Date of Incident : Wed, 26 January, 2022
Case ID : f6644fb
location East Delhi, Delhi, India
date 26 January, 2022
Hindu female journalist forced to convert to Islam by Muslim news channel owner
Predatory Proselytisation
Harassment, threats, coercion for conversion
Conversion/ attempts to convert by inducement

Case Summary

A Hindu female journalist was forced to convert by her Muslim Managing Director at News Action Network, a YouTube-based news channel in Preet Vihar, Delhi. In a viral video on January 26, she stated that her employer, Shan Chaudhary, pressured her to embrace Islam, promising to increase her salary from ₹25,000 to ₹1 lakh. Despite filing an FIR two months ago, she stated that no action had been taken by the police. She recounted that after resigning, her salary was withheld for 45 days. When she was finally called to the office, she was abused and threatened by Chaudhary in the presence of others. She managed to escape and reported the incident at the Preet Vihar Police Station. However, ASI Sohangir initially refused to file her FIR. After persistent efforts, the FIR was registered, but the police failed to conduct a proper investigation. The case was transferred between three different investigating officers, yet no evidence was collected. Seeking justice, she approached social activists Rajesh Bhasin and Aastha, who helped her record her statement under Section 164 and raised the issue on social media. In a 33-minute live video uploaded by Bhasin, they discussed how Chaudhary had political ties and was being promoted as a "Future SP Candidate." However, the official SP candidate lists did not confirm his candidacy. Meanwhile, Shan Chaudhary filed a defamation case against her.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

This case has been added to the tracker under the prime category of- Predatory proselytisation. Under this, the first 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 second sub-category under which this case has been placed 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. In this subcategory, we would only include cases where the victim was harassed, threatened or coerced to convert. Cases where attempts were made to convert but the victim resisted would be documented in another sub-category. 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. In this instance, a Hindu female journalist came on the video to share how she was harassed and coerced to renounce her faith and convert to Islam by her Muslim employer. The accused lured her into converting on the pretext of increasing her salary. When this did not work and the woman resigned, the accused tried to exert pressure on her by withholding her salary. He further abused her and even threatened to kill her. Basically, the Muslim employer tried to manipulate the victim into a situation where he could coerce her into abandoning her faith. The use of such intimidatory tactics 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 coercive actions, with the ultimate goal of religious subjugation and domination. The deliberate nature of targeting 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.

Victim Details

Total Victim

1

Deceased

0


Gender

  • Male 0
  • Female 1
  • 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 Background
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Case Status


Complaint registered

Case Status Background
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Perpetrators Details

Perpetrators


Muslim Extremists

Perpetrators Range


One Person

Perpetrators Gender


male

Case Details SVG
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