Bhopal: Members of Bajrang Dal allegedly assaulted and publicly humiliated a Muslim man for meeting up with a Hindu woman in a hotel room, accusing him of “love jihad” in Madhya Pradesh’s Bhopal.
Videos of the assault have gone viral on social media, showing multiple Hindutva workers dragging the 27-year-old Arif Khan onto the street, half-naked from the hotel room, smearing paint on his face, while hurling Islamophobic abuses. Local media claimed that the mob also applied cow dung on his face, further humiliating the man.
Taking law into their hands
The incident occurred on May 11, when Arif had gone to meet the woman at the Pride Inn Hotel in Gautam Nagar. The situation escalated when Bajrang Dal received information about the couple and arrived at the location.
They barged into the hotel and began an inquiry, effectively taking the law into their own hands to confirm if it was a case of “love jihad,” a conspiracy theory which even the Union Home Ministry has debunked, stating there is no statutory provision recognising it under Indian law.
The woman told the police that she had been in a live-in relationship with Arif for several years and confirmed that she was willingly meeting him.
Despite the woman’s claims, the disturbing visuals show Arif being brutally assaulted by the mob and forced to chant “Jai Shri Ram.” The group even made insulting religious remarks, such as “call your Allah,” according to the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR).
Expressing outrage over the incident, the local Muslim community held a protest the following day, on Tuesday, May 12, demanding strict action against those involved in the assault.
Out of the 8 accused identified, 6 held for hurting religious sentiments
The event transpired in the presence of police who, as seen in the videos, attempted to intervene. The officials have since filed a first information report (FIR) based on a complaint filed by Mohammad Rehmani, a resident of Bhopal.
Speaking to Siasat.com, Govindpura Station House Officer Awadhesh Singh Tomar said the case has been registered under Sections 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings), 191(2) (force or violence used by an unlawful assembly), and 3(5) (constructive liability for unlawful acts committed by more than two individuals) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
According to the SHO, both Arif and the woman decided not to file any complaint. Tomar said that the case was registered due to the local Muslims’ allegations that the accused made derogatory religious remarks.
“Based on the findings from the videos, we have identified eight individuals and arrested six,” SHO Tomar said. “The other two will be arrested by tonight.”
He said that the mob was a “crowd of people not affiliated with any organisation,” and more than the eight identified accused were responsible for assaulting Arif. “The search is on for the remaining accused,” he added.
However, a separate complaint filed by APCR claimed that the men identified themselves as members of Bajrang Dal and detained Arif before assaulting him and filming the entire incident.
APCR stated that the attack was a deliberate attempt to incite communal hatred and disrupt peace, accusing the accused of taking the law into their own hands.
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