MUZAFFARNAGAR – Hindu In-laws in India have killed their Muslim son in law for marrying their daughter who had later converted to Islam.
On Monday afternoon, Naseem, 22, was returning home with a birthday cake for his son when he was attacked, allegedly by his in-laws. He was beaten up with sticks, and then shot twice — in the stomach and forehead. He died at 1:15 pm, minutes after he was shot, Indian Express reported.
Naseem Khan and Pinki Kumari (Now Ayesha) got married two years ago, just two years after communal riots in their district of Muzaffarnagar killed at least 50 people. The couple moved to Visakhapatnam to protect their lives, where their son, Abdullah, was born on July 17 last year. Last month, they returned to their village to celebrate Eid.
Naseem and Pinki used to be neighbours. “We studied in the same school. A few years ago, my parents came to know about us.
They locked me in the house and my brother beat me up. They wanted me to marry someone else,” said Pinki.
“It’s been barely two years since they got married. It was a court marriage. There were no ceremonies. Soon after they got married, they returned to Visakhapatnam,” said Naseem’s cousin, Nazar Mohammad. Pinki converted to Islam and changed her name to Ayesha.
“Initially, my parents and brothers used to threaten my in-laws. They would send messages through other villagers. We celebrated all the festivals away from home,” said Pinki.
The couple decided to celebrate Eid this year in their village as the threats had stopped. “We arrived here a day before Eid, on June 25. We were supposed to return to Visakhapatnam within a few days. But we decided to celebrate our son’s first birthday here, so we extended our stay. We would have left for Visakhapatnam today,” said Pinki.
According to NDTV, people in the village are trying hard to make sure the murder doesn’t disturb peace in the region scarred by riots in 2013 in which 60 were killed and thousands displaced. “There were some elements who had come from outside and had tried to escalate tension yesterday. But we are sure this is not a communal incident, more of a murder due to personal enmity,” said Captain Gyanendra Kumar, the village head.
Police said an FIR, under IPC sections relating to murder and rioting — 302, 147, 148, 159 and 506 — against Pinki’s father Rajesh, brother Pradeep, cousin Sonu, and another relative Nitu has been registered, Indian Express reported.
“The FIR has been registered on the basis of the complaint filed by Naseem’s cousin against four persons. The accused are absconding but we are conducting raids and they will be nabbed soon. A post-mortem has been conducted and the body has been returned to the family,” said Muzaffarnagar SP Ajay Kumar Sahdev.
According to Indian Express, Pinki claimed she spoke to her brother on Monday afternoon, after she heard of her husband’s death.
“I asked him why he had killed my husband. It was not my husband’s fault. I had run away from my parent’s house. I asked him how could he not think of my one-year-old son while killing my husband. My brother said he would kill me and my son… I want them behind bars. How can the police not find them? They must be at some relative’s house or hiding in the fields,” she said.
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