The War on "Love Jihad”: Hostility Towards Interfaith Couples in India
GHRTV Reporter
01-02-2022
Kivilcim Ceren Buken
India and Human Rights Researcher,
Global Human Rights Defence.
"Love Jihad" is a conspiracy theory based on the claim that Muslim men in India are luring Hindu women into marriage on false premises of romance, only to forcefully convert them into Islam; with an aim to increase the Muslim population in the country. Even though there is no evidence to prove any attempt, the fear that there is a Muslim agenda of mass "Love Jihad" has, combined with the background of religious tension in the country, become a mainstream topic of political discourse.
Experts voice that "Love Jihad" claims are nothing new; in fact, these claims have been around since the 19th century. The story of the Hindu female victim and the Muslim male abductor was particularly popular in the 1920s, when many Hindu organizations claiming to protect "their" women were publishing statements, distributing pamphlets and organizing meetings against the perceived threat that Muslim men were abducting and converting Hindu women into Islam, without concrete proof. There have been many flare-ups of the conspiracy since.
As it is once again becoming mainstream, the conspiracy gives way to grave real-life consequences: there have been numerous accounts of beatings of Muslim men in romantic relationships with Hindu women, as well as reports of "Love Jihad" killings in the past few years. As recently as in January 2022, a Muslim man was dragged out of a train and beaten by a mob for traveling with a Hindu woman; and in another incident, a right-wing group stormed a hotel for giving a room to an interfaith couple.
The government's policy of making it harder by law for interfaith marriages to take place, such as the Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance of 2020, which is largely being referred to by international media as "The Love Jihad Law", has been widely criticized and deemed to be supportive of the violence against interfaith couples. There have also been claims that the attackers of interfaith couples enjoy impunity, as authorities are said to be hesitant to investigate "Love Jihad" beatings and killings.
Sources and further reading:
Apoorvanand, 'India's "love jihad" laws: Another attempt to subjugate Muslims' Aljazeera (15 January 2021) <https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2021/1/15/indias-love-jihad-laws-another-attempt-to-subjugate-muslims>
Charu Gupta, 'Hindu Women, Muslim Men: Love Jihad Conversions' (2009) 44:51 Economic and Political Weekly pp. 13-15
'Mob beats up Muslim Man for traveling with Hindu woman in Ujjain' Hindustan Times (19 January 2022) <https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/mob-beats-up-muslim-man-for-travelling-with-hindu-woman-in-ujjain-101642532034860.html>
'Ruckus at Hotel in MP over stay of interfaith couple' Hindustan Times (23 January 2022) <https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/ruckus-at-hotel-in-mp-over-stay-of-interfaith-couple-101642876311507.html>
Sumit Ganguly, 'The problem with India's "Love Jihad" Laws' The Conversation (27 January 2021) <https://theconversation.com/the-problem-with-indias-love-jihad-laws-152675>
Hannah Elis Petersen, Ahmet Khan, ''They cut him into pieces': India's 'Love Jihad' conspiracy turns lethal' The Guardian (21 January 2022)
Soutik Biswas, 'Love Jihad: The Indian Law threatening interfaith love' BBC (8 December 2022) <https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-55158684>
