First woman detained under UP's anti-conversion law sent with her in-laws

Muradabad (Uttar Pradesh): Pinky-turned- Muskan Jahan, the first woman detained under the controversial anti-conversion law passed recently by the Uttar Pradesh government, has been allowed to go with her in-laws. She submitted before a magistrate here that he had married Rashid – who is now under arrest as per the anti-conversion law, on her own will in July and that she wants to be with his family.

Muskan also submitted that she was administered with injections, during her detention at a shelter home, which caused a miscarriage. Earlier officials had denied a report by the UK based The Telegraph, which quoted families saying that the girl had suffered a miscarriage.

According to a Hindi portal's report, after reaching at Rashid's home Muskan said on Monday:

"I was tortured there (Nari Niketan) for three days. I suddenly had a stomach ache. They did not care me. When health was further deteriorated, I was taken to the hospital. Doctors gave an injection. Then there was very much bleeding. After that my health deteriorated again. When injected, I got miscarried. Ultrasound scanning showed the pregnancy was correct at first, but miscarried after the injection. The injections that were given to me, caused more bleeding. Everything was fine before that. I had an injection in the evening on December 11, when there was some bleeding. Two days later, four injections were done, medication was given which also caused high bleeding. My health got weaker…. Although the law has helped me, I want my husband and brother-in-law to be allowed to come home too. I married on my own free will."

On Saturday morning, Muskan told reporters that she, along with Rashid and Salim was taken into custody by the Muradabad police while going for the marriage registration.

The police recorded the arrest of Rashid and his brother Salim on 5 December and were charged with Sections 3 and 5 of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance, 2020. The police claimed that they were acting on the complaint of the girl's mother that Rashid had forcibly converted and married her daughter.

Rashid and Muskan (then known as Pinky) met two years ago and developed a relationship while they were working together in Dehradun and decided to get married.

Even though Rashid's family was upset at his swift action, they accepted the relationship. Pinky, who had taken the decision to convert and adopt the name Muskan before her marriage in July, soon got pregnant, much to the delight of her mother-in-law, before the arrest.

Rashid was arrested on Sunday, after the family visited a lawyer in Moradabad to register their marriage in Uttar Pradesh, as the couple had married in neighbouring Uttarakhand.

Rashid and Saleem continue to be in jail. The Mordabad police has said that they would seek legal opinion on Muskan's statement before the magistrate to decide the future course of the case.