Days after the Bijnor police arrested a Muslim boy under the recent Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance for allegedly enticing a Dalit minor girl by changing his name to Sonu, new facts have emerged in the case.
Ismaeel Ahmed, the pradhan of Kirakhedi gram panchayat, the village of the accused, said the boy did not change his name to lure the girl and that Hindu and Muslim families share names such as Sonu, Guddu, etc. He claimed the duo was returning from a birthday party on December 14 night when they were stopped by some villagers in Naseerpur on suspicion of being battery thieves.
“The boy was beaten up. They then called up the police... the police gave it a new direction,” he alleged.
In a video that surfaced on Friday, a mob could be seen beating Sonu.
Bijnor SP Dharm Veer Singh said the police have registered a case and arrested two persons but denied such allegations. “The girl’s father gave a written complaint and the girl’s statement was recorded under Section 164 of CrPC,” he said.
