A young Hindu woman from Mannargudi has alleged that a four-year relationship with a Muslim man she met on Instagram turned into a campaign of religious conversion, pressure to change her identity, demands for money and jewellery, and threats to release fabricated or compromising images to destroy her reputation. She says the threats left her so distressed that she attempted suicide by consuming 60 sleeping pills.
The woman, who identified the man as K.A. Shahid Mufazal Ali, made the allegations during a press conference at which Sri Sri Chendalankara Shenbaga Mannar Jeeyar, popularly known as Mannargudi Jeeyar, gave her a platform to narrate her account. She has alleged that Shahid and his family tried to make her abandon her Hindu identity and adopt a Muslim name, and threatened her and her mother when they resisted.
The allegations have not been independently established. The woman has said she possesses audio recordings of conversations and threats and is willing to submit them for investigation.
Woman Alleges She was Gradually Pressured to Abandon Hinduism
According to the woman, she met Shahid on Instagram and their friendship gradually developed into a romantic relationship over four years. When she told him that her Hindu background could lead her family to oppose the relationship, she alleges that he assured her he would marry her with her family’s consent.
She alleges that Shahid and his mother, K.A. Rasheeda Banu, gradually influenced her to abandon her religious beliefs. They allegedly told her that Allah was the only true God and instructed her to pray five times a day. Rasheeda Banu allegedly taught her Quranic verses, prayers and religious practices, including what to recite while bathing and drinking water.
The woman said she eventually began following the practices they taught her and felt that she had been made to forget her Hindu identity.
When her mother discovered the relationship, she allegedly beat her. The woman said she subsequently confided in Rasheeda Banu, who allegedly advised her to take jewellery and money from her home secretly and move to the family’s residence.
According to the woman, Rasheeda Banu promised to arrange fake Aadhaar and PAN cards under the name “Ayesha Fatima” and have the marriage solemnised through their Jamaath. The woman said she refused to run away from her home and insisted that Shahid’s family approach her mother instead.
Alleged Plan to Create a New Identity
The woman said her mother later met Shahid’s family. Shahid reportedly drove her mother to their house in Pallapatti, in Aravakurichi taluk of Karur district.
She described the residence as a large, bungalow-like house. When her mother questioned the family’s apparent wealth, Rasheeda Banu allegedly told her not to worry about arranging documents or the marriage.
According to the woman’s account, Rasheeda Banu claimed that her elder son, who lived in Mumbai, possessed four Aadhaar cards—two bearing Hindu names and two bearing Muslim names. She allegedly said that the woman could be given a new identity as Ayesha Fatima and married through the Jamaath.
These claims about the alleged identity documents have not been independently verified.
The woman also alleged that Shahid’s family encouraged her mother to sell their property in Mannargudi and purchase land in Pallapatti. They allegedly proposed buying a plot of around 1,500 square feet near their home in the woman’s name, constructing a house and renting it out.
According to her, the proposal was intended to establish her as someone belonging to Pallapatti and make it easier for her to live there under her proposed Muslim identity. She said conversations about registering property in the name of Ayesha or Fatima were part of a wider effort to make her Hindu name and background disappear.
The woman referred to audio recordings in which, she alleges, members of the family discussed purchasing land close to their residence and registering it under another name. In one recording she described, a speaker allegedly told her mother that she could retain her existing property or give it to whomever she wished, but should purchase land for the woman near their house.
In another alleged recording, a speaker reportedly referred to the mother’s concern that her only daughter might be cheated after changing religions and said that others had advised registering the woman under a different name.
₹7 lakh Allegedly Taken Under the Pretext of Business
The woman further alleged that Shahid’s family persuaded her mother to pay ₹7 lakh on the pretext of a business arrangement that never materialised. She also referred to another payment of ₹60,000 connected with a vehicle’s payment or dues.
She said she did not know about the money at the time it was handed over.
When she and her family later went to recover the money, the woman alleged that the family locked her inside and said they would deny receiving the amount because there was no proof of payment.
She claimed that Rasheeda Banu then threatened to release photographs and videos to humiliate her if she approached the police or the media. According to the woman, Rasheeda Banu said that local police and reporters would not help her and allegedly invoked the influence of a politician named Shahul Hameed.
The woman said she did not independently know who Shahul Hameed was and presented the reference as part of the alleged threat.
She also alleged that Shahid’s family and his elder brother threatened retaliation if she complained. According to her, they threatened to create and circulate vulgar or compromising videos depicting her bathing or sleeping, or to falsely portray her as having had sexual relations with Shahid.
She clarified that she believed the family was threatening to create such material, rather than necessarily possessing genuine intimate photographs or videos of her.
The woman alleged that they also threatened to send material to her mother’s workplace to damage her reputation and jeopardise her employment. Other threats allegedly included arranging for someone to die or threatening suicide and then implicating her. She said audio recordings of some of these conversations were available.
Woman Says Threats Drove Her to Consume 60 Sleeping Pills
The woman said the alleged blackmail and threats continued to affect her mental health. She was afraid that disclosing the threats would prompt the family to release the material they had threatened to create or circulate.
She said she told her mother that she needed psychological help but initially did not reveal the full extent of the alleged blackmail because she was frightened.
Her family took her to a doctor, Dr Venkatesan, in Thanjavur. According to her account, she reported suicidal thoughts, severe fear, trembling and sleeplessness. She said she was prescribed medication for 14 days and later received sleeping tablets for a 30-day period.
The woman alleged that she repeatedly replayed the threats in her mind and eventually consumed 60 tablets at around 11 a.m. She said she left a letter expressing the hope that no other girl would fall into a similar situation.
At around 5 p.m., her mother called her to see someone outside. The woman said she then realised what she had done, drove herself to Mannargudi Government Hospital and collapsed near the entrance after telling those present that she had taken tablets.
She said doctors faced difficulties because several hours had elapsed before treatment began. She was treated over several days and spent five days in the intensive care unit.
The woman insisted that the suicide attempt was not simply about recovering the money. She attributed it to the alleged threats, pressure to change her religion and identity, fear of public humiliation and threats to her mother’s reputation and livelihood.
Police Case Allegedly Treated as a Financial Dispute
The woman said police recorded her statement three days after the incident. However, according to her, the case was registered or handled primarily as a financial fraud or cheating dispute over the money.
She alleged that the threats involving fabricated images, blackmail, coercion to change her religious identity and the wider circumstances surrounding the relationship were not adequately investigated.
The police’s version of the case and the precise sections registered were not independently established from her account. Her allegations about the handling of the complaint therefore require verification.
The woman said she has audio recordings of conversations in which, she alleges, Shahid’s family discussed changing her name, arranging documents and property, and threatening her and her mother. She said she was prepared to hand over the recordings to the authorities.
She also explained that the family communicated extensively through WhatsApp, including among themselves, which she believed made it harder to document some conversations. She nevertheless maintained that she had retained recordings of calls and other exchanges.
Allegations of Similar Cases Involving Other Women
The woman further alleged that Shahid had previously approached other Hindu women through social media and that people associated with him had also targeted Hindu women. She claimed that some Instagram accounts initially used Hindu names and were later renamed with Muslim names.
She referred to an alleged earlier incident involving another woman whose name and mother’s name she said she knew. She also spoke about an alleged incident in which a woman’s photographs were posted on Instagram. The time references in her account of the earlier case differed, and the claims were not independently verified.
Some of what she said about alleged incidents in Mumbai, Maharashtra and Villupuram appeared to be information she had learned from others rather than events she had personally witnessed. These claims, including allegations of fraud or theft, require independent investigation before they can be treated as established facts.
She also alleged that Shahid used and sold ganja, saying she had seen WhatsApp conversations on his phone that she later came to understand differently. That allegation, too, remains unverified.
The woman said Shahid’s elder brother lived in Mumbai and allegedly used the name Surjith. Her claims about the brother’s identity documents and alleged activities were based, at least in part, on what she said the family had told her.
Mannargudi Jeeyar Calls for Wider Investigation
During the press conference, Mannargudi Jeeyar described the matter as “love jihad” and alleged that it could point to a wider network targeting Hindu women. He called for the police to investigate the woman’s allegations beyond the financial dispute.
The Jeeyar said the woman had been admitted to Mannargudi Government Hospital after her suicide attempt and questioned whether the circumstances that allegedly drove her to that point had been adequately examined.
The woman said she wanted other girls to be protected from similar experiences and urged that the alleged threats, identity fraud and coercion be investigated. She maintained that she had been repeatedly addressed as “Ayesha” by Shahid’s family and felt that her original name and identity were being erased.
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