A sordid sex and blackmail case has rapidly turned into a brazen bid to communalise a crime in Rajasthan.
The shocking case of sexual abuse and exploitation of five minor girls rocked Vijay Nagar in the state's Beawar district on 16 February, when three FIRs were lodged, alleging that a group of men had been sexually assaulting minor girls, filming the acts, and using the footage to blackmail them.
But with all the accused belonging to one community, what started as a criminal investigation has spiralled into a communal flashpoint, creating a politically charged atmosphere that has inflamed social frictions and religious divisions.
The scandal got exposed after the parents of one of the teenage girls saw her talking on a mobile phone, and upon questioning her, the details of the shocking racket came tumbling out.
According to the local police, a group of miscreants trapped and blackmailed the girls from a private school in Vijay Nagar, subjected them to rape, and allegedly even tried to coerce them into conversion. The horrific ordeal of the minor victims sparked a furore soon after their family members complained to the police.
Besides claiming that the accused had taken their obscene photos and videos and were blackmailing them, the victims have reportedly also alleged that the culprits were pressuring them to adopt Islam.
This cynical communalisation of a criminal act, through the invocation of the 'love jihad' bogey, represents a dangerous trend that undermines justice, fuels societal division, and erodes the rule of law.
Crime Turns into a Communal Flashpoint
As investigations progressed, it was revealed that all the victims were Hindus, while the culprits, all labourers, were Muslim youngsters between 19 and 21 years of age. This demographic detail quickly became a flashpoint. Though the police arrested seven Muslim men and detained three Muslim minors within a day of the FIRs being lodged, right-wing groups seized on the case and created a ‘love jihad’ narrative to stoke communal sentiments.
With Hindutva hardliners leading the public outrage, protests erupt across Vijay Nagar, leading to calls for severe punishment, including the demand for ‘bulldozer action’ against the accused.
Compounding the gravity of the crimes, local groups injected a ‘love jihad’ angle to spread misinformation and incite hatred. After the accused were arrested, Hindutva groups called for a ‘bandh’ and held a huge protest in Vijay Nagar on 21 February. The accused were also attacked by some advocates when they were presented at an Ajmer court last week.
In an attempt to demonstrate a tough stance on the crime, the Vijay Nagar municipality issued notices to the families of the 10 accused on 20-21 February, asking them to furnish proof of ownership of the houses where they have lived for decades. The notices warn that if relevant documents are not submitted in time, the municipality will initiate action to remove illegal constructions — and all the expenses will be recovered from the families of the accused.
Strangely, municipal authorities have served demolition notices even for a local mosque, a madarasa, and a graveyard. Residents say the local Jama Masjid has existed for over 100 years.
What makes the notices a curious and questionable move is that the administration has no answer to the basic query — why have notices been issued just days after the sex and blackmail scandal surfaced and why are affected families being asked to furnish documents of ownership about properties in which they have resided for decades?
Legal, Social Implications of a Communal Spin
With the demolition of their properties imminent, families of the accused are anxious and sullen. They argue in one voice that the threat of 'bulldozer action' is a punitive plan that's patently unjust.
Besides the fundamental issue of why a family should be punished for the misdeed of one of its members, the impending demolitions seem to be a violation of fundamental rights and principles of natural justice.
"If my son is guilty, let them punish him. But what wrong have I or my other kids done? If they demolish our house, we will be rendered homeless for no fault of ours. How can such unfair acts be called justice?"Idris Qureshi, father of one of the accused
Besides the families of the accused, even social activists have castigated the notices and the demolition threats as a dubious bid to communalise the incident.
In a strong statement, Kavita Srivastava, the national president of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), has demanded “the immediate halt of the potential bulldozer action in the town of Vijay Nagar." The statement further said using bulldozers will be a violation of the Supreme Court’s directives in its order dated 13 November 2024.
To recap, the Supreme Court had asserted that demolitions should not be initiated without a prior show-cause notice and a legally prescribed timeframe. The top court had also termed it “totally unconstitutional” to demolish a person’s house without due process of law solely on the basis of being an accused in a criminal case.
Despite the apex court’s directives, the Vijay Nagar municipality seems undeterred. A local café named ‘Chill Out’, where the accused and the victims allegedly met often, has been partly demolished by municipal authorities, alleging illegal occupation and construction.
While 'bulldozer action' is no recipe for calming tensions, local officials claim it's a legitimate legal measure even as critics call it an arbitrary and extra-judicial punishment to target one community.
The core issue in Vijay Nagar is the appalling sexual abuse and exploitation of vulnerable minors. However, the introduction of the 'love jihad' narrative alleges a conspiracy by Muslim men to seduce and convert Hindu women. Its deployment in this context serves to frame the crimes not as acts of individual depravity, but as part of a larger, religiously motivated plot.
The Vijay Nagar case is a stark reminder of the challenges facing Rajasthan – and India – as a whole. The confluence of heinous crimes and inflammatory rhetoric threatens social cohesion and smacks of political opportunism. This tragedy also reveals how easily criminal acts can be transformed into communal flashpoints these days.
Addressing these challenges requires a commitment to rule of law that rejects divisive ideologies. While justice for victims must be the top priority, it is equally essential to ensure that law enforcement actions do not unfairly target any community. Only a balanced and lawful approach can help prevent such incidents from escalating into full-fledged communal crises.
(The author is a veteran journalist and expert on Rajasthan politics. Besides serving as a Resident Editor at NDTV, he has been a Professor of Journalism at the University of Rajasthan in Jaipur. He tweets at @rajanmahan. This is an opinion article and the views expressed are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for them.)