In Uttarakhand’s Udham Singh Nagar, a Muslim man named Jabir Ali befriended a Dalit Hindu woman by introducing himself as Suraj. After that, he had physical relations with her several times on the pretext of marriage. During this, Jabir made an obscene video of the girl and forcibly married her by threatening to defame her. Jabir enjoyed the woman’s money and when his money ran out, he left her after 6 years.
The matter pertains to the Kichha area in Udham Singh Nagar wherein a woman has complained to the police in this regard. In her complaint, the woman said that her husband Jabir hid his identity from her and told her his name was Suraj. He became acquainted with her by posing as Suraj. After some time, Jabir pretended to love her and had physical relations with her in the name of marriage.
In her complaint to the police, the 33-year-old victim, a Scheduled Caste resident of Gaughat in Katharra, said, “He (Jabir) pretended to love me and even made an obscene video. He used it to blackmail me and force me to marry him.” The victim was scared of the possibility of defamation, however, Jabir Ali continued with his blackmailing and harassment.
One day, Jabir Ali took the victim to his elder sister’s house in Jehanabad and started forcing her to marry him. The victim said, “When I refused, Jabir and his brothers – Abbas Ali, Riyasat, Zakir and Shakir – started threatening to make the video viral and kill me.” Eventually, the victim was forced to marry.
The victim said that before forcing him to marry her, she thought Jabir Ali was a Hindu. However, it was too late when she came to know the truth. Jabir used to beat the woman and pressurise her to convert to Islam. When the victim did not agree to this, Jabir and his family members started threatening to kill her.
The victim has said in her complaint that at the time of marriage, she had many items including a two-tola gold chain around her neck, two earrings of one tola each, and a laptop. Along with this, she also had one lakh rupees. The victim says that after some time of marriage, when her property got exhausted, she was pressured to bring a dowry. Eventually, the victim was thrown out of the house along with her 6-year-old child.
Based on the woman’s complaint, the police have registered a case against Jabir Ali and his brothers. The accused have been booked under sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, as well as sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 498A (cruelty by husband or relatives) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Speaking to the Organiser, the victim said that Jabir is a fakir and does exorcism. “He hypnotised me by pretending to be the sun. He did black magic and manipulated me to such an extent that I could not even think properly. Whatever he said or did, I felt right at that time,” the woman said.
The victim said that when she became pregnant, Jabir forced her into a forced marriage. “I never changed my name or religion and continued to follow Hindu practices like fasting during Navratri, reciting Durga Saptashati and organising Kanya Bhoj. After the marriage, Jabir threw away all my idols and religious books ,” the victim said.
The victim said that it was only after the birth of her son that she came to know that Jabir was already married and had children. The victim alleges that Jabir did all this to grab her jewellery and money. The victim also said that during this time Jabir and his family members used to call her a Kafir and abuse her regarding her caste.
According to the victim, “Jabir threw me out of the house and said that I have done my work. Now I have no use for you.” The victim also said that soon after the birth of her child, Jabir got him circumcised and started raising him according to Muslim customs, talking of teaching him namaz etc. However, when the woman opposed this, he threw her out of the house.
