Love, Loss, and Lawsuits: Jaipur Woman's "Ghar Wapsi" After Alleged Conversion and Property Fraud
JAIPUR: November 5, 2024: A fraud case of marriage, religious conversion, and property has surfaced from the capital of Rajasthan, Jaipur. Maharashtra woman Pratima Navankur, who resides in Jaipur almost for a year, filed a complaint that she was cheated by the local man Arif Inayat whom she got acquainted with in 2020. According to Pratima, Arif took the excuse of love for getting her married after her conversion, and then grabbed all her family property and began harassing her for money.
Pratima had gone to Jaipur to attend a festival right before the lockdown because of COVID-19 in early 2020. With the travel ban continuing, she got a flat and started going to the local gym, where she met Arif, who was a trainer. She states that he had initially coerced her into a relationship and before marriage, he made her change religions. However, on 18 October 2021, she claimed, he married her. She further claims that Arif had a physical relationship with her based on wrong pretences prior to the marriage.
Deception of Property and Financial Exploitation
Post Marriage, Pratima further claims that Arif sold her ancestral property in Mumbai at a significantly low price, and he took all her money in his custody. She accuses him of not taking financial responsibilities, particularly when she is fighting dengue and her young daughter is suffering from an illness. Despite these challenges, she claims Arif has not contributed to their medical bills nor taken responsibility for her and her child. He has allegedly threatened her with divorce to avoid further financial commitments.
The young woman had approached local MLA of the BJP, Bal Mukund Aacharya, and he introduced the case of Pratima to Additional Commissioner Kunwar Rashtradeep, that led to an official complaint. Arif, in her assertion, had exploited his influence for not filing initial complaints regarding the matter to the police station at Shastri Nagar.
The MLA started raising concerns that it is a case of "love jihad".
MLA Aacharya publicly condemned the case, saying that it fits into a pattern of such cases in which Hindu women are taken advantage of through interfaith marriage. He also asked for stern action to be taken against such instances and mentions that the conversion was not a good-faith one and that Pratima had been forced to do so, coupled with severe financial and personal ramifications.
Police Inquiry and Pratima's Plea for "Ghar Wapsi"
The Jaipur police have filed the complaint and are treating the allegations very seriously. They have placed security around Pratima and are investigating the minutest details of her complaints. Pratima wanted to go back to her original faith, saying that she lost trust in her partner and in the conversion process. She also wants formal separation from Arif because she said he had lied about his previous marriage and his five children.
This is a case that underlines ongoing debates about interfaith marriages and religious conversions in India, especially if charges of coercion and fraud come into the fray. An investigation will follow to clarify the veracity of her claims and what legal course to pursue next.
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