'Sick monsters': Trinamool spokesperson blasts BJP for linking Tunisha Sharma's death to 'love jihad'

Mumbai Police, however, have said there is no ‘love jihad’ angle, at least as now.

To call the BJP a ‘sick monster’ would be an understatement, Trinamool Congress (TMC) spokesperson Saket Gokhale said on Monday, as he lambasted the party over claims by some of its leaders that the death of TV actor Tunisha Sharma, who died by suicide on Saturday, is a case of ‘love jihad.’

TMC spokesperson Saket Gokhale (PTI/File Photo)

“The post mortem on the poor woman's body isn't even complete yet let alone her being laid to rest. And the BJP has already begun to user her tragic death for their own hateful political agenda. To call the BJP sick monsters would be an understatement,” tweeted Gokhale.

The Trinamool spokesperson's tweet came after Maharashtra minister Girish Mahajan and MLA Ram Kadam alleged there was a ‘love jihad’ angle in the demise of Sharma, who took the extreme step on the sets of a TV show she was working in.

According to right-wing groups, the so-called love jihad happens when a Hindu girl begins a relationship with a Muslim man, who pretends to be Hindu. After marriage, he forces her to convert to Islam, as per these groups. Courts and the Union government, however, do not recognise love jihad.

Sharma's mother, in a complaint to the police after Tunisha's death, stated the actor and her co-star, Sheezan Khan, were in a relationship, but broke up 15 days ago. After this, Tunisha died by suicide, the complaint said.

While Khan has been arrested for abetment to suicide, the Mumbai Police have said there is no angle of love jihad, at least as of now.