A female Hindu employee at Lulu Mall in Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow charged her manager, Farhaz also known as Faraz, with rape and blackmail. He also forced her to convert to Islam, leading to his arrest. She disclosed that he gave her a cold beverage that was spiked with drugs and then sexually violated her.
He recorded the disturbing act on video, which he later used to blackmail her and extort money and jewellery. The victim endured cigarette burns, verbal abuse and physical assaults when she resisted. He also issued death threats to her. The complaint additionally indicated that the accused persistently pressured her to embrace Islam.
He claimed that she need to comply in order to keep her job at the mall. Moreover, he repeatedly disparaged Hinduism and its deities, which deeply hurt the woman’s religious beliefs. An initial investigation revealed that the perpetrator might have links with suspicious social media accounts and conversion networks.
The police are currently carrying out a cyber forensic inquiry to determine whether he is involved in a broader network. Additionally, the police are interrogating other employees of the mall. The Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) informed that a case has been filed against the offender under multiple charges, including rape, threats to murder and attempts at forced conversion.
He has been presented in court and placed under remand. As of now, there has been no official statement from the management of Lulu Mall regarding the incident.
