Muslim man held in MP for ‘forcing’ wife to adopt Islam

The accused, 28-year-old Irshad Khan was arrested under sections 3, 4 and 5 of the 1968 Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act 1968 and section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (harassment or cruelty), said Mukesh Bais, additional superintendent of police.

Published on: Dec 1, 2020, 01:54:14 IST

Hindustan Times, Bhopal | By Shruti Tomar

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

A 28-year-old Muslim man was arrested in Madhya Pradesh’s Shahdol district on Monday for allegedly forcing his wife to adopt Islamic practices, local police said.

The accused, 28-year-old Irshad Khan was arrested under sections 3, 4 and 5 of the 1968 Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act 1968 and section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (harassment or cruelty), said Mukesh Bais, additional superintendent of police. “The 27-year-old woman lodged a complaint on Sunday that she married Irshad Khan in 2018 but after two years, Khan started pressurising her to read Namaz and adapt to the Islam culture. When the woman refused to do so, Khan started physically harassing her,” said the ASP.

Khan rejected the charges and said his wife was giving a communal taint to a personal issue .

”Before our marriage, the woman had given a statement before the magistrate that she was aware of my religion and she wanted to marry me. We had a Nikah but now she is levelling baseless charges,” he said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shruti Tomar
I have spent over a decade chronicling Madhya Pradesh’s political and social landscape, covering politics, investigative journalism, crime, human interest, and government policy, blending sharp insight with ground‑level depth. I have closely tracked three assembly elections, three Lok Sabha elections, leadership transitions in MP while exposing governance lapses, tender irregularities, and flawed policy rollouts. My reports have revealed gaps in the Cheetah project, irregularities in medical education, rigging in recruitment exams, and loopholes in policy implementation. In crime reporting, I have moved beyond FIRs to map systemic patterns — from organised crime networks and gender‑based violence to custodial accountability — balancing urgency with sensitivity. My journalism is defined by a commitment to human interest. I have profiled the marginalised Bancchda community, documented atrocities against tribal groups, and highlighted efforts to preserve their culture through heritage liquor and revival of spiritual practices. I have reported on farmers struggling with failed MSP promises, giving voice to those often reduced to statistics in policy files. Passionate about field reporting, I have reported on rampant sand mining in Chambal and Narmada, pharmaceutical companies supplying medicines under altered names, the dire condition of schools and colleges, the plight of commercial sex workers, and skewed sex ratios in specific districts. Beyond deadlines, and as HT’s state correspondent and assistant editor in Madhya Pradesh, I engage with ministers, farmers, students, and activists, believing the best policy stories begin with a single human voice. A postgraduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, I also hold a diploma in sports journalism.Read More

Home/Cities/Bhopal News/Muslim Man Held In MP For ‘forcing’ Wife To Adopt Islam