17-Year-Old Girl in Uttar Pradesh Alleges Abduction, Forced Religious Conversion Attempt

A 17-year-old girl in Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur has alleged that she was abducted, confined for nearly a week and subjected to physical torture in an attempt to force her to convert her religion, police said on Sunday. According to a complaint filed by the girl's family in Rawatpur, she left home on June 21 after being called by a youth identified as Armaan, a resident of Chamanganj, whom she had previously met at Kargil Park in Moti Jheel. Police said the two allegedly met again near the Namak Factory crossing on the day of the incident, news agency PTI reported. The girl alleged that Armaan arrived in a car with two unidentified youths and took her around the city before confining her at his house in a Muslim-majority locality. During questioning, the teenager told police that Armaan and his family allegedly "pressured her to recite religious verses", sign documents written in Urdu and eat beef, an official told PTI on the condition of anonymity. The girl, who escaped and returned home on Saturday, also alleged that she was branded with a hot iron tong during her confinement. She further claimed that Armaan and his family threatened to kill her and her relatives and warned that she would be sold if she refused to comply with their demands. Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) SM Qasim Abidi said a case had been registered against Armaan, his parents and his sister based on the complaint filed by the girl's father. "The main accused, Armaan, was arrested on Sunday and is being intensively interrogated. Preliminary inquiry suggests that the accused and the victim knew each other prior to the incident," Abidi said. Police said the investigation is ongoing and further action will be taken based on the findings.