In yet another incidence, a young interfaith couple faced a violent physical attack after attempting to register their marriage legally at Rewa’s district court in Madhya Pradesh.
The incident reportedly occurred when a Muslim man named Rakin Khan and a Hindu woman, belonging to an upper caste community approached the court to finalize their marriage documents but soon faced a vicious attack.
‘Court lawyers launched the attack’, claims
According to the reports, the situation escalated when the couple entered a lawyer’s chamber. The woman was dressed in a burqa (veil). When she disclosed her Hindu name during the paperwork procedure, lawyers there developed suspicion and subsequently forced Khan to show his Aadhaar card.
At the time of the incident, all lawyers of the court were sitting together in the chamber as they were on strike. Subsequently, a group of lawyers rushed to confront Khan when he disclosed his Muslim identity.
They aggressively surrounded him accusing him of engaging in “Love jihad. After the accusation, the situation rapidly deteriorated when the lawyers initiated physical attacks against Khan, leaving him severely injured.
“Love jihad” is a conspiracy theory coined by right-wing radical outfits that accuses Muslim men of intentionally and strategically alluring and entrapping non-Muslim women with the intent to “convert them” to Islam and marry them as part of an “Islamisation project”.
Amid the chaos, local police were informed and Civil Lines SHO Kamlesh Sahu arrived at the scene with three personnel. The police officers quickly intervened to save the couple from the violent mob and prevented further untoward.
A video of the incident that surfaced on social media on Saturday, February 22 reveals the nature of the brutal attack. The clip shows Khan in torn clothes and the Hindu woman visibly in distressed condition escorted by the police and being taken into a police jeep.
Police statement
Speaking on the case, SHO Kamlesh Sahu stated that the woman had a Hindu name but was dressed in a burqa, triggering an attack from the agitated lawyer’s mob. “The young couple have been in a relationship for over a year and wanted to marry. The man works as a labourer, and their parents have not come forward so far. We managed to save them, and that’s what matters now,” Sahu told The Indian Express.
Additional Superintendent of Police Vivek Kumar informed that an FIR has been filed against identified persons for assaulting the man based on Khan’s complaint. “We are investigating the incident and looking into the role of lawyers as well, the officer added”.
However, as of now, no arrest has been made.
Bar association distanced itself from the incident
Distancing itself from the incident, the Rewa Bar Association denied responsibility for the attack, asserting that the lawyers were only participating in a protest against new legal regulations.
On the other side, several bar association members told a different story to media reporters by denying physical assault suggesting that injuries sustained by the couple might have been caused by others.
This alarming attack on interfaith couples had been earlier reported across the country, particularly, when the right-wing members found the Muslim identity of a man. This fresh attack marks the second occurrence of such violence in the BJP-ruled state within a month.
On February, 7, a young interfaith couple was violently attacked by members of the extreme Hindu right wing at the Bhopal district court, where they had gone to legally register their marriage. The attack took place after court lawyers informed the right-wing Sanskrit Bachao group and its affiliates, disclosing the couple’s marriage plans and personal details.
Upon the tip-off, the extremist group members rushed to the spot and launched a brutal attack on the Muslim youth within the court premises.
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