Members of Hindu groups in Barkagaon, Jharkhand, went on hunger strike on August 17 in protest against the attempted forcible conversion of Hindu girls Suman Kumari and her little sister. Suman, her mother Kiran Devi, and her younger sister were all on hunger strike, according to sources. Notably, Hindus such as the Bajrang Dal, the VHP, and others threatened to go on hunger strike on August 16 if the accused in the case were not apprehended within 24 hours.
Kiran Devi described an event that occurred on August 10. She said that at approximately 8:30 p.m., the village leader Wasin, his son, and scores of others came to her house and forcibly removed both of her girls while using harsh language. They put pressure on them to convert to Islam and threatened to murder them if they did not. “They forced both of my girls to do sit-ups and abused them under the guise of making films viral,” Kiran Devi alleged.
Aman Kumar of the Sanatan Hindu Samaj Sangathan stated that the police were not taking action on the incident. He stated that they filed a formal complaint with the Barkagaon Police Station and requested security for the victim’s family. Despite setting August 15 as the deadline for arresting the suspects, the Police took no tangible action. As a result, Hindu organizations decided to go on hunger strike. He went on to say that they would remain on hunger strike until the family received justice.
She added, “The next morning, I met Sadar Mohammad Halil, Secretary Professor Farzuddin, and Panchayat Samiti member Shabnam Parveen’s husband Mohammad Irfan along with other people from the community to file a complaint in the matter. When the accused got information about the meeting, they again visited my house in the night and beat up my daughters.”
Station in command According to Vinod Kumar, the Police have launched an investigation into the case, and two persons have been detained thus far. Earlier, it was claimed that Barkagaon Police had filed a complaint against Suman and her mother for inciting people on religious grounds. Based on the complaint of the Muslim side, the case was filed under Sections 295(A) and 298 of the IPC, as well as Section 67 of the IT Act. Local people accused the police of protecting the culprits.
