Kerala Church Reignites 'Love Jihad' Debate, Say Christian Girls Being Lured, Recruited To ISIS

The Syro-Malabar Church, the largest Christian body in Kerala has stoked controversy after it expressed concern over how the police are handling the issue of 'Love Jihad' in the state. The church body made the comment during the Synod (meeting of the bishops of the Church) chaired by Cardinal George Alencherry.

The Synod said that incidents of so-called "love jihad" are increasing in Kerala and they pose a danger to the secular harmony and social peace of the state.

BCCL/FILE

"It's a matter of fact that planned 'love jihad' is happening, targeting Christian girls. According to what police have said among the 21 who went to ISIS half of them were Christian converts it is a serious matter that many who are not in the records are being converted and used for terrorist activities," read a press release from the media wing of the Syro-Malabar Synod.

It also alleged that the police have not acted on these cases and said the cops should look into the matter as a law and order issue and not as a "religious issue". "Instead of seeing this as a religious issue, police should act looking at this as a law and order issue that affects society negatively," Syro-Malabar Synod said.

Incidentally, this is not the first time the Catholic church in Kerala has jumped into the whole 'Love Jihad' controversy.
In 2015, the then Bishop of Idukki, Mathew Anikuzhikattil had claimed that incidents of Christian girls falling victims to ¡®Love Jihad¡¯ were on the rise.

BCCL/FILE

Last year there was a massive controversy in the state after two alleged cases of 'love jihad' surfaced. In the first case, an 18-year-old Christian girl was drugged and raped by a 19-year-old Muslim boy who then allegedly used the visuals of the sexual assault to threaten to force her to convert to Islam and marry him.

In a post that went viral on social media in Kerala, the girl's father had alleged that his daughter was drugged by two of her female classmates who were friends of the boy. He had also alleged that despite them filing a police complaint, no action was taken.

The police swung into action and arrested the accused only after the Vice-Chairman of the National Minorities Commission, George Kurian took it up with Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Kurian had written to Shah demanding a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into conversions of Christian girls to Islam.

BCCL/FILE

In the second case which also surfaced around the same time, the daughter of Christian couple from Kerala, who is settled in Delhi disappeared from home after she left for CA coaching.

The family had alleged that she was kidnapped and taken out of the country. Days later, the 18-year-old girl surfaced in Abu Dhabi, with a 27-year-old Muslim youth who she said was her husband.

The girl had also converted to Islam and had taken a new name - Aisha. Despite the family's appeal, she refused to return to them and had claimed that she converted to Islam on her own will and that there was no 'love jihad'.

Following the two incidents, family and community Whatsapp groups were flooded with messages on how Muslim boys are using friendship to lure Christian girls and convert them, and asked parents to be vigilant about their children.