A case of forced conversion has come to light in Uttarakhand. On 25th May, Ranipur Police of district Haridwar, Uttarakhand, registered an FIR against Hakeem Mufti Adil under Sections 3 and 5 of the Uttarakhand Freedom of Religion Act, 2018 on complaint of a man named Kundan. In his complaint, Kundan said that Hakeem Mufti Adil lured his parents to convert to Islam in exchange of money.
OpIndia accessed the FIR registered in the case. The FIR read, “I request you to register a report and take legal action concerning the matter of religious conversion through deception and allurement of money. My parents, Sangeeta (wife of Charan Singh) and Charan Singh (son of Kartar Singh) are both illiterate and simple, poor people. Due to illness, they frequently visited a Hakim in Vikasnagar, Dehradun district, for treatment. This Hakim, Mufti Adil (son of Rifaqat), who resides near the police post in Vikasnagar, lured my parents with promises of money and land, resulting in their conversion to Islam.”
The FIR further read, “This Maulana has previously been involved in converting poor and illiterate people by offering them money and is a very cunning individual. Consequently, my family and I are under a constant threat to our lives and property. Therefore, I kindly request that you register a case of religious conversion against this Maulana and take necessary action so that he cannot legally convert any more poor and illiterate Hindus.”
The Haridwar police have registered a case against Mufti Adil, a resident of Vikasnagar, for coercing and enticing a Hindu couple to convert to Islam. The accused, however, remains at large, with multiple police teams searching for his whereabouts.
Police registered a case against Hakeem Mufti Adil on Kundan’s complaint and initiated an investigation. A team was dispatched to Vikasnagar on Monday night. Hindustan report suggested that the accused was apprehended by the police and brought to an outpost on Monday morning but subsequently escaped raising questions over the circumstances in which he managed to do so.
The station in charge of Vikasnagar police station, Rajesh Shah, said in a statement that local police are investigating the matter. The police are trying to locate his whereabouts. The accused has been distributing medicines in the area for years and managed to evade scrutiny in forced conversion cases till date. MLA Munna Chauhan of BJP has asked police to ensure the accused is apprehended as soon as possible.
