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19-year-old man arrested in UP’s Bijnor under anti-conversion law
Police said that during interrogation, the girl alleged that the man concealed he was a Muslim
The police registered a case under the new UP Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance 2020 at Dhampur police station in Bijnor district of western Uttar Pradesh and arrested a 19-year-old man on Wednesday on charges of enticing a minor girl, allegedly by concealing his identity, and attempting to convert her to Islam.
Arun Kumar Tyagi, the station house officer of Dhampur police station, said the 14-year-old girl belonged to a Scheduled Caste. A case has been registered against the 19-year-old Muslim man under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, provisions of the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, and the new ordinance against forced religious conversions by way of marriage.
Tyagi said the young man lured the girl -- both are from Bijnor district -- and said his name was Sonu. The police officer added that they were in a relationship for over a year and that they eloped on December 14. They reached a nearby town even as their neighbours informed the police. They were held and the Dhampur police were informed about them.
Tyagi approached the girl’s family at her village in Dhampur. The family admitted that the girl eloped but they did not report the matter to the police to avoid social embarrassment.
During interrogation, the girl alleged that man concealed that he was Muslim, the police said. The girl said that he later mounted pressure on her for marriage and conversion, Tyagi added. The girl was sent for medical examination and the accused was sent to jail.
