On October 12, a video of a street play based on the theme of a romantic relationship by deceitful means went viral on social media. The video was shared by Sudarshan News on Twitter. In the video, a girl approaches a boy to click a selfie. The boy proposes to her before getting the selfie clicked, and the girl agrees. While the girl was trying to click the photograph, the boy took out his skullcap and wore it.
हिंदू समाज को दीमक की तरह संक्रमित कर रहे उन्मादी वायरस #LoveJihad के विरुद्ध ये थीम प्रशंसनीय है, वंदनीय है.
— Sudarshan News (@SudarshanNewsTV) October 12, 2021
सभी गरबा/डांडिया व दुर्गा पूजा पांडालों में ऐसे थीम बनाए जाएं ताकि न सिर्फ सनातन की पवित्रता बची रहे बल्कि हमारी बहन बेटियां भी लव ज़िहाद से बची रहें. pic.twitter.com/yVz6P7K20G
The moment the girl noticed the skullcap, she shrugged him away. The boy slapped her, and when the girl tried to retaliate, he threw her on the floor and strangulated her. A girl in the background was holding a placard on which it was written “Love Jihad” with an “X” mark in front of it depicting that Hindus should rise against it.
Many users appreciated the concept and said that such theme-based events should spread information about Love Jihad.
Shivaji Kranti, a Twitter user, said, “Garba and Dandiya are a sacred part of the ancient tradition of Hindu Culture. The coming generation should carry it forward without changing its concept. Such presentations will help in preventing our daughters from becoming victims of Jihad.”
गरबा/डांडिया हमारे हिन्दू संस्कृति के सांस्कृतिक और शौर्य की प्राचीन परम्परा का वो पवित्र हिस्सा है, जिसे आने वाली पीढ़ी को भी उसके मूल अवधारणा में बिना परिवर्तन किए आगे बढ़ाना चाहिए। ऐसी प्रस्तुति अवश्य ही हमारी बच्चीयों को जिहाद का हिस्सा बनने से रोकने में सहायक होगी।#लव_जिहाद https://t.co/E9g0KgA73n
— शिवाजी क्रांति (@KrantiShivaji) October 12, 2021
Another Twitter user, Rajendra Shukla, wrote, “Stop Love Jihad. I strongly support the theme.”
#LoveJihad
— Rajendra Shukla #शाकाहारी (@Rajendrashuklad) October 12, 2021
Stop LoveJihad.
I strongly support this theme. https://t.co/UNA0Nl0GsF
While the ‘liberal’ ecosystem wants to dismiss Grooming Jihad (Love Jihad) as a figment of imagination conjured up to further ‘Islamophobia’, the literature on the phenomenon is too profound enough to simply dismiss it as a mere conspiracy theory aimed to target Muslims.
In April 2021, a case of Love Jihad was reported from Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. A complaint was filed by a woman, who alleged that her 25-year old husband had kept his real identity hidden for two years since marriage and pretended to be Arman Kohli when he was actually Afzal. The woman alleged that her husband revealed his real identity only after their daughter was born. More recently, in May 2021, another case of Love Jihad came to light when a man named Abid posed as ‘Inspector Aditya’ and blackmailed a Hindu woman to marry him. After marrying the woman, he forcibly converted his wife to Islam.
And these are just two cases that have been reported in the last few days. There have been hundreds of cases that have been registered across the country. Hindu women are not the only victims of Grooming Jihad. Even Christian women have been targeted by the offenders. Back in 2020, it was widely reported that Hindu and Christian girls were going missing from Kerala. It was later revealed that these girls were specifically targeted and converted, married to Muslims, and brainwashed to join ISIS. In addition to this, Kerala MLA PC George recently admitted that at least 12 Hindu and 35 Christian girls had been victims of Love Jihad in the state.
The preponderance of Love Jihad cases has forced state governments to enact a law to curb the menace. Several state governments such as Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Odisha have already notified a law criminalising Love Jihad. There are also several cases where Muslim men pretend to be Hindus to trap women and then later pressurise them to convert to Islam or murder them when their real identity is revealed.
