Amid a clamour for action against “love jihad” in the state, the Madhya Pradesh Police formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) with the sole purpose of probing allegations of forced religious conversion.
This comes in the wake of the Bhopal rape and blackmail case, in which a group of men are accused of raping women after hiding their religious identity.
An order issued by the Madhya Pradesh Police Headquarters said they received intelligence that “socially vulnerable and weaker sections of girls/women have been systematically targeted through tactics such as romantic entrapment, deception, threats, or other inducements, leading to their mental, physical, and social exploitation.”
“In these incidents, victims have allegedly been coerced into religious conversion through fear, pressure, or deceit. Such incidents are not only criminal in nature, but also pose a serious challenge to the dignity, freedom, and social harmony of women.”
The SIT’s mandate includes identifying and investigating incidents of forced conversions, tracking down individuals, organisations, or gangs that maybe involved, and aim at ensuring stringent legal action against the perpetrators. The team will also probe potential interstate or international networks linked to these crimes and analyse digital and cyber platforms to gather evidence. Additionally, the SIT is tasked with recommending preventive measures to curb such incidents in the future.
The politics around such incidents has heated up, with some groups now carrying out door-to-door campaigns to inform citizens to stay vigilant against forced religious conversions.
The SIT is chaired by the Bhopal (Rural) Inspector General of Police, and includes senior officials such as the Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime & Headquarters), Urban Police Bhopal; the Assistant Inspector General of Police, Women Safety Branch; and the Superintendent of Police, State Cyber Cell; among others. The team has been granted the authority to include additional officers as needed to facilitate the investigation.
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On May 2, the main accused in the Bhopal case, who has been arrested allegedly for the rape and blackmail of some college girls, was shot and injured after he purportedly tried to escape custody by snatching a policeman’s pistol.
According to police, the accused was being taken for evidence collection when he allegedly tried to snatch the pistol of a sub-inspector. Following the incident, the state Sports and Youth Affairs Vishwas Sarang said the accused should have been shot in the chest instead of in the legs.
So far, five victims have come forward and lodged FIRs at different police stations in Bhopal against the accused men. According to police, there are six main accused in the cases, out of which five have been arrested.