Haryana: Accused Found Innocent In 3 Out Of 4 Cases Similar To Love Jihad Registered In 3 Years, Reveals RTI

While the Haryana government is planning to bring a Bill on 'love jihad' in the upcoming Budget Session, an RTI query has revealed that only four cases were registered over similar charges in the last three years, and the accused was proven innocent in three cases.

The fourth case is pending before a court. These cases were registered in six districts of the state.

After accessing the information from the police department, Right To Information activist PP Kapoor told the media that no case of 'love jihad' was reported from three districts, including Hisar, Faridabad and Yamunanagar, over the past three years, The Indian Express reported.

A case filed in Punhana police station last year in December was cancelled after the completion of the inquiry. Two cases reported from Ambala were also withdrawn after the police probe, while the court acquitted the latter. The pending case is the one lodged in Samalkha police station of Panipat district in June 2019.

Kapoor had sought the information regarding complaints related to the cases of 'love jihad'.

Earlier, Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij had announced that the state government will introduce a strict law to control what he claimed, 'love jihad' cases in the state. There was no response from the Chief Minister's office in the recent development.

A senior police officer confirmed that the state department does not have any data on love jihad. "Love jihad is a term coined by the politicians and media. So, except in the cases involving atrocities on SC/STs, we don't maintain data according to the religion of the victim and the accused. For us, a crime is a crime. Since love jihad is not defined in the IPC, how can we tell how many such cases took place," the officer said.

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