Love Jihad

Love Jihad also called Romeo Jihad, is an alleged activity under which some young Muslim boys and men reportedly target college girls belonging to non-Muslim communities for conversion to Islam by feigning love. While similar activities have been reported elsewhere, the term has been used to describe the activity in India. The allegations have raised concerns in various Hindu and Christian organizations,^[1] while Muslim organisations in Kerala have denied that they are true.^[2] Officials in India have taken concerns seriously and investigations were launched in 2009 in Kerala and Karnataka, but to date no organised activity of the sort has been confirmed in those investigations.^[3][4][5]

Scope

Love Jihad was alleged to be conducted in Kerala and Mangalore in the coastal Karnataka region. According to Kerala Catholic Bishops Council, up to 4,500 girls in Kerala have been targeted, whereas Hindu Janajagruti Samiti claimed that 30,000 girls have been converted in Karnataka alone.^[6][7][8] Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana general secretary Vellapally Natesan said that there had been reports in Narayaneeya communities of "Love Jihad" attempts.^[9][10]

Reports of similar activities have emerged from Pakistan and the United Kingdom.^[11][12][13]

The practice is said to be popular on college campuses, and it was on one such that in early September 2009 two girls—one Hindu and one Christian—indicated that they had been forced to convert by two Muslim youths.^[14] The young men, both of whom were members of the Muslim Popular Front of India's student organisation Campus Front were subsequently arrested and held without bail.^[14] Other women have reported similar situations.^[15] According to press reports, the purpose of the activity is to force girls to produce children for Islam.^[16]

Official investigation

In October 2009, the Karnataka government announced its intentions to counter "Love Jihad", which "appeared to be a serious issue".^[17] A week after the announcement, the government ordered a probe into the situation by the Crime Branch CID to determine if an organised effort existed to convert these girls and, if so, by whom it was being funded.^[18] One woman whose conversion to Islam came under scrutiny as a result of the probe was temporarily ordered to the custody of her parents, but eventually permitted to return to her new husband after she appeared in court, denying pressure to convert.^[19][20] In April 2010, police used the term to characterize the alleged kidnapping, forced conversion and marriage of a 17-year-old college girl in Mysore.^[21]

Following the launching of a poster campaign in Thiruvanathapuram, Kerala, purportedly by organisation Shri Ram Sena, state police began investigating the presence of that organisation in the area.^[22] In late October 2009, police addressed the question of "Love Jihad" itself, indicating that while they had not located an organisation called "Love Jihad", "there are reasons to suspect ‘concentrated attempts’ to persuade girls to convert to Islam after they fall in love with Muslim boys".^[23][24] They documented unconfirmed reports of a foreign-funded network of groups encouraging conversion through the subterfuge, but noted that no organisations conducting such campaigns had been confirmed and no evidence had been located to support foreign financial aid.^[3]

In late 2009, The Karnataka CID (Criminal Investigation Department) reported that although it was continuing to investigate, it had found no evidence that a "Love Jihad" existed.^[4] In late 2009, Director-General of Police Jacob Punnoose reported that although the investigation would continue, there was no evidence of any organisation using men "feigning love" to lure your women to convert to Islam.^[25] However, on 9 December 2009, Justice K T Sankaran for the Kerala High Court weighed in on the matter while hearing bail for the Muslim youth arrested for allegedly forcibly converting the two campus girls. According to Sankaran, police reports revealed the "blessings of some outfits" for a "concerted" effort for religious conversions, some 3,000 to 4,000 incidences of which had taken place after love affairs in a four year period.^[26] Sankaran "found indications of ‘forceful’ religious conversions under the garb of ‘love’", suggesting that "such ‘deceptive’ acts" might require legislative intervention to prevent.^[26] According to The Indian Express, his conclusion that "such incidents under the pretext of love were rampant in certain parts of the state" ran contrary to Central and state government reports.^[27] In early 2010, the State Government reported to the Karnataka High Court that although a large number of young Hindu women had converted to Islam, there was no organized attempt to convince them to do so.^[5] A petition was also put before Sankaran to prevent the use of the terms "Love Jehad" and "Romeo Jehad", but Sankaran declined to overrule an earlier decision not to restrain media usage.^[27] Subsequently, however, the High Court stayed further police investigation, both because no organised efforts had been disclosed by police probes and because the investigation was specifically targeted against a single community.^[28]

Community response

Various organisations have joined together against this perceived conduct. Christian groups, such as the Christian Association for Social Action, and the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) banded against it, with the VHP making a specific Hindu helpline that answered 1,500 calls in three months related to "Love Jihad".^[1] The Union of Catholic Asian News (UCAN) have reported that Catholic Church is concerned about this alleged phenomenon.^[14] The Vigilance Council of the Kerala Catholic Bishops' Council (KCBC) raised an alert for the Catholic community against the practice.^[6] In September, posters appeared in Thiruvanathapuram, Kerala under the name of right-wing group Shri Ram Sena warning against "Love Jihad".^[22] The group announced in December that it would launch a nationwide "Save our daughters, save India" campaign to combat "Love Jihad".^[29]

Muslim organizations in Kerala called it a "malicious misinformation campaign".^[2] Popular Front of India (PIF) committee-member Naseeruddin Elamaram denied that the PIF was involved in any "Love Jihad", stating that people convert to Hinduism and Christianity as well and that "[r]eligious conversion is not a crime".^[14] Members of the Muslim Central Committee of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts have responded by claiming that Hindus and Christians have fabricated these claims to undermine the Muslim faith and community.^[30]

In July 2010, the "Love Jihad" controversy resurfaced in the press when Kerala Chief Minister V. S. Achuthanandan referenced the alleged matrimonial conversion of non-Muslim girls as part of an effort "to make Kerala a Muslim majority state".^[31][32] The Popular Front of India dismissed his statements due to the findings of the Kerala probe,^[32] but the president of the BJP Mahila Morcha, the women's wing of the conservative Bharatiya Janata Party, called for an NIA investigation, alleging that the Kerala state probe was closed prematurely due to a "tacit understanding with the Popular Front of India".^[33] The Kerala Congress responded strongly to the Chief Minister's comments, which they described as "deplorable and dangerous".^[31]

See also

• Marital conversion
• Exogamy
• National Development Front
• Popular Front of India
• Sri Ram Sena
• Flirty Fishing

References

1. ^ ^{a b} 'Love Jihad' racket: VHP, Christian groups find common cause
2. ^ ^{a b} 'Love Jihad' a misinformation campaign: Kerala Muslim outfits
3. ^ ^{a b} "DGP suspects presence of 'Love Jihad' in Kerala". Mathrubhumi. http://www.mathrubhumi.org/news.php?id=25130. 
4. ^ ^{a b} "Karnataka CID finds no evidence of 'Love Jihad'". The Hindu. 2009-11-13. http://beta.thehindu.com/news/article47922.ece. 
5. ^ ^{a b} Staff Reporter (2010-04-23). "No love jihad movement in State'". The Hindu. http://www.hindu.com/2010/04/23/stories/2010042354760500.htm. 
6. ^ ^{a b} "Beware of ‘love jihad’". Mathrubhumi (Kochi, Kerala, India: mathrubhumi.org). 2009-10-15. http://www.mathrubhumi.org/news.php?id=24804. Retrieved 2009-10-18. 
7. ^ Is 'Love Jihad' terror's new mantra?
8. ^ Mangalore: Eight Hindu Organisations to Protest Against ‘Love Jehad’
9. ^ "SNDP to campaign against Love Jihad: Vellappally" (in English). Asianet. 19 October 2009. http://www.asianetindia.com/news/sndp-protest-love-jihad-vellappally-2_91229.html. Retrieved 20 October 2009. ^{[dead link]}
10. ^ "SNDP to join fight against ‘Love Jihad’" (in English). ExpressBuzz. 19 October 2009. http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=SNDP+to+join+fight+against+%E2%80%98Love+Jihad%E2%80%99&artid=wuP0MSLoFwE=&SectionID=1ZkF/jmWuSA=&MainSectionID=fyV9T2jIa4A=&SectionName=X7s7i%7CxOZ5Y=&SEO=. Retrieved 20 October 2009. 
11. ^ sikh-communities-hindu-and-sikh-white-girls
12. ^ police-protect-girls-forced-to-convert-to-islam
13. ^ hindu-girls-targeted-by-extremists
14. ^ ^{a b c d} Church, state concerned about ´love jihad´
15. ^ muslim-boys-are-targeting-sikh-and-hindu-girls-to-convert-to-islam
16. ^ Rang, Ketan (2009-10-30). "Love Jihad's Baby Machines". http://www.mid-day.com/news/2009/oct/301009-Islamic-body-Love-Jihad-Hindu-Christian.htm. Retrieved 2011-08-23. 
17. ^ "Karnataka to take steps to counter 'Love Jihad' movement". Deccan Herald. 2009-10-22. http://www.deccanherald.com/content/31814/karnataka-take-steps-counter-love.html. 
18. ^ Govt directs CID to probe ‘love jihad’
19. ^ Love jihad: HC orders thorough probe by DGP
20. ^ Woman denies ‘love jihad’, court lets her to go with lover
21. ^ Love Jihad: girl rescued
22. ^ ^{a b} Babu Thomas (26 September 2009). "Poster campaign against ‘Love Jihad’". expressbuzz.com. http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Poster+campaign+against+%E2%80%98Love+Jihad%E2%80%99&artid=eSNUV415FsM=&SectionID=lMx/b5mt1kU=&MainSectionID=lMx/b5mt1kU=&SEO=&SectionName=tm2kh5uDhixGlQvAG42A/07OVZOOEmts. Retrieved 17 October 2009. 
23. ^ No ‘Love Jihad’ in Kerala
24. ^ "Kerala HC wants probe into 'love jihad'". Indian Express. http://www.indianexpress.com/news/kerala-hc-wants-probe-into-love-jihad/523630/2. 
25. ^ "Kerala police have no proof on ‘Love Jihad’". Deccan Herald. 2009-11-11. http://www.deccanherald.com/content/35486/kerala-police-have-no-proof.html. 
26. ^ ^{a b} "Kerala HC asks govt to frame laws to stop ‘love jihad’". The Economic Times. 2009-12-10. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/Kerala-HC-asks-govt-to-frame-laws-to-stop-love-jihad/articleshow/5320856.cms. 
27. ^ ^{a b} "HC calls for law to check ‘love jehad’". The Indian Express. 2009-12-10. http://www.indianexpress.com/news/HC-calls-for-law-to-check--love-jehad-/552275. 
28. ^ Kerala cops fail to establish 'love jihad' conspiracy
29. ^ 'Rama Sene to launch 'Save our daughters Save India'
30. ^ 'Anti Muslim forces phrase 'Love Jihad
31. ^ ^{a b} "Kerala CM criticised for speaking out against ‘love jihad’". The Economic Times. 27 July 2010. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/Kerala-CM-criticised-for-speaking-out-against-love-jihad/articleshow/6221406.cms. Retrieved 28 July 2010. 
32. ^ ^{a b} "Kerala CM reignites 'love jihad' theory". Times of India. 26 July 2010. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Kerala-CM-reignites-love-jihad-theory/articleshow/6216779.cms. Retrieved 28 July 2010. 
33. ^ "Love jihad cases: Mahila Morcha for NIA probe". Express News Service. The New Indian Express Group. 25 July 2010. http://expressbuzz.com/cities/thiruvananthapuram/love-jihad-cases-mahila-morcha-for-nia-probe/192716.html. Retrieved 28 July 2010.