RAJ KUMAR
Ranchi, Sept.8: The Maulana Azad Humane Initiative (MAHI), a voluntary organisation committed to work in the field of education, self employment generation, health and social harmony, today expressed its concern over the effort of finding religious angle in crime.
Addressing a press conference, the organisation was very much specific about crime against women and ‘love jihad.’ The cases related to crime against women in Jharkhand during the past 15 days were also discussed.
Organisation convener Ibrar Ahmed said all the crimes against women worth condemnation and the accused should be given proper punishment for the same but associating criminals with any religion and thus creating a rift in the society is equally wrong.
Ahmed was of the opinion that those who commit crime against women are criminals and they can not be associated with any religion. Sharing data he said according to data of National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) as many as 4, 28,278 cases of crime against women were registered across the country in 2021 and it has been observed in 43.3 percent cases those perpetuating atrocities against women are close relatives of women cutting across caste, creed and religion and thus any attempt to give religious angle to crime against women is wrong.
The convener while sharing his view also presented examples from other parts of the country suggesting how girls were raped by their own relatives.
The press conference was organised after a section of BJP leaders and their supporters made hue and cry when names of Muslims surfaced in crime against back to back three of the five crimes against women including two from Dumka and one from Khunti.
In Dumka, a girl was set on fire by a youth belonging to the Muslim community while another girl was raped and hanged by a youth of the same community. In Khunti, a minor girl was impregnated by a minor Muslim youth.
Taking all these incidents into the consideration, MAHI convenor Ahmed said when such crime is committed by someone having the same religion as the girl, such hue and cry is not made. “This is a wrong practice as silence against crime is also wrong” Ahmed said.
A section of police officials supported the MAHI.
“Crime against women in Khunti has nothing to do with love jihad as propagated as the girl was well aware of the religion of the boy with whom she established physical relationship,” superintendent of police of Khunti, Aman Kumar, said.
Deputy inspector general of Dumka range, Sudardhan Prasad Mandal, echoed Kumar saying ‘we so far did not find any love jihad angle. You should better ask those who are saying this entire thing.’
Mahagama legislator Dipika Pandey Singh had earlier expressed a similar view during the recently held assembly session convened for seeking a vote of confidence for Hemant Soren.
Contacted BJP spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo for his comment on the issue, he said Ahmed is not wrong but love jihad cannot be ruled out.
“We are aware that the majority of crimes are committed against women by their own relatives and for that separate attempt is being made to stop. But this does mean that Hindu girls are not being trapped by a section of Muslim youths under an agenda. Several Muslim boys associated with Ansar Bangla become friendly with Hindu girl hiding their identity and then marry them to produce children. When the girl understands the reality and raises objections they are being killed. We know only those incidents who are reported to police while many go unreported,” Shahdeo said.
