MP man held as girlfriend accuses him of raping, forcing her to convert after watching ‘The Kerala Story’
A 23-year-old man was arrested in Indore for allegedly raping his live-in partner and pressuring her to change her religion.
The woman had filed an FIR following an argument with the man after watching ‘The Kerala Story’, police said.
The man was arrested under provisions of the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act 2021, which prohibits conversion by force or cheating, and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Khajrana police station in-charge Dinesh Verma told reporters.
The woman filed the FIR against the man “after she fell into the trap of love under the pretext of marriage”, Dinesh Verma said, adding that she was living with the accused, news agency PTI reported.
In her complaint, the woman accused the man of mentally harassing her and pressuring her to change her religion.
“The woman said she and the man recently went to watch ‘The Kerala Story’. After watching the film, the duo argued and the man left her after assaulting her. She approached the police on May 19 and lodged an FIR,” the police officer said.
The accused is a 12th pass and unemployed while the victim is highly educated and is employed with a private company. The police officer said the woman had met the man while studying in a coaching institute four years ago.
“All the allegations are being thoroughly investigated,” Dinesh Verma further said.
‘The Kerala Story’, which was released in theatre halls on May 5, claims that women from Kerala were forced to convert to Islam and recruited by the terror group Islamic State (IS).
The movie, which had already generated controversy over its content even before its release, was banned in West Bengal on May 8, fearing tension among communities. Theatres in Tamil Nadu had decided to stop the movie’s screening from May 7 onwards due to poor audience turnout and the law and order situation.
On May 18, the Supreme Court stayed the West Bengal government’s order banning the film in the state and asked Tamil Nadu to ensure the safety of the moviegoers.
The movie has been declared tax-free in the BJP-ruled states of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Uttarakhand.