It would be very wrong to believe that the so-called ‘love jihad’ is a national phenomenon or that it even exists in the alarming way that it is alleged to
A number of Muslim celebrities in political and social lives and in the glamour world are married to Hindus, and no one has complained. They have neither been condemned nor have they created any tension amongst the two communities. In fact, these people have batted for Hindu-Muslim unity.
Unfortunately, of late, some Hindu hardliners have been spreading the nonsensical propaganda called ‘love jihad' to create tensions between the two communities with the sole intension of polarising votes. ‘Jihad' is the buzz word in international politics, and it means waging a ‘holy war' against non-Muslims and treating them as enemies. ‘love jihad' has come to mean a ‘holy war' against Muslim Romeos, who entice Hindu girls feigning love, marry them and then forcibly convert them to Islam.
The phenomenon started in 2009-10, when it was rumoured that thousands of Hindu girls from Karnataka and Kerala were forcibly being converted to Islam after they married Muslim youths. However, repeated police investigations did not find much truth in it. Nevertheless, the charges framed by the so-called torch-bearers of Hindutva that there are organised, funded gangs working with a pre-meditated design to accomplish such sinister motives have been strongly denied by Muslim organisations.
Recently, a few stray incidents have been reported and widely publicised, where Muslim boys have married Hindu girls, hiding their religious identities and posing to be Hindus, and later on compelled their partners to convert to Islam. Some of the examples are Tara Shahdeo, a sportswoman from Jharkhand; a girl from Allahabad, another from lalitpur, and so on. After being exposed, all the accused are being tried under the Criminal Justice Act. One should hope that justice will be done.
It is a fact that the instances which have come to light have cast a shadow. There have been genuine cases where a girl was misled or trapped into a relationship and then married by not being told about the boy's religious affiliation. It is also true that there are people out there who, with the help of Muslim hardliners, are engaged in this sordid task of luring Hindu girls. But, fortunately for now, such instances are not in the epic proportion that justifies the hysteria certain hardline Hindu groups have unleashed on the country.
There are hundreds of brides being tortured by their husbands and the latter's families, married into same religion, but who is bothered about themIJ
There is a need to understand why a Hindu-Muslim alliance attracts such negative attention. This is not the case with Hindu, Sikh or Christian alliances. The reason is religious compulsion on conversion, laid down in the Muslim personal law.
There are legal remedies to report and punish forcible conversions. Girls can always bring the culprits to books. On the other hand, if a Hindu and Muslim couple is leading a happy married life, whether converted or not, why should it be ostracisedIJ Girls are being forced to leave their husbands and return to their parents, only to suffer humiliation and face an insecure life.
When two adults, knowing their respective religious affiliations, fall in love and marry there is nothing wrong in it. However, even if the girl changes her religion of her own will, the couple should not be reprimanded by society or khap panchayats, which function like kangaroo courts. On the contrary, the individuals should be appreciated and even given incentives by the Government, because such instances in the long run actually helps in bringing about communal harmony and promoting national integration.