In a disturbing case of moral policing, an interfaith couple faced a brutal attack by a mob of six Muslim men in a hotel room in Karnataka’s Haveri district. The assailants forcibly entered a room in a Hanagal Taluk hotel where a Hindu man and a Muslim woman were staying, subjecting them to abuse, physical assault, and recording the attack. The incident, which occurred on January 7, took a horrifying turn as the woman claimed to have been gang-raped by the attackers after being taken from the hotel.
The attackers, as seen in the recorded video, stormed the hotel room, assaulting and abusing the couple. The woman, attempting to shield herself with a burqa, was slapped violently, while the man faced further physical assault as he tried to escape. The attackers dragged the couple out of the room despite their pleas.
In a subsequent video, filmed after the attack, the woman was seen with the assailants outside the hotel. They forcibly lifted her hijab, further violating her privacy.
Disgusting repeated Incidents of Moral Policing comes to light from from Haveri, Karnataka.
A Gang barged into a hotel and trash a interfaith couple. The group abusing, assaulting the girl, trying to remove her scarf while she was trying to cover it. 2 people arrested pic.twitter.com/my58LH5zsD
— Muhammad Wajihulla (@wajihulla) January 11, 2024
Anshu Kumar, Superintendent of Police, Haveri, reported that after the hotel assault, the attackers took the woman to a secluded location, assaulted her again, and later left her on the road.
The couple complained to the Hanagal police station, leading to the arrest of three out of the six assailants identified as Afatb Maqbool Ahmed Chandankatti (24), Samaiullah Lalanavar (23), and Mohammed Isaaq Mandakki (23). An ongoing search is in progress for the remaining accused.
In a subsequent development, a video emerged in which the woman claimed she was gang-raped by seven men after being taken from the hotel. The woman asserted that she was raped at multiple locations in a jungle before being abandoned near a bus stand.
The assault on a couple in a lodge in Hangal of Haveri district by some miscreants in the name of moral policing is highly condemnable. The police must arrest all those who were involved in the moral policing and punish for their act.
After manhandling the girl, she had been…
— Basavaraj S Bommai (@BSBommai) January 11, 2024
The rape charge was not initially included in the complaint, and the police became aware of it through media reports after the video surfaced. Haveri SP Anshu Kumar stated that an investigation is underway.
The accused, unrelated to any organisation, has a history of involvement in a similar case, per police records.
The incident highlights the assault on a 26-year-old Muslim woman in a consensual relationship with a Hindu man, sparking outrage over moral policing and interfaith relationships. The accused face charges under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including assault, criminal intimidation, rioting, house trespass, and outraging modesty.
This incident comes on the heels of another interfaith attack in Belagavi, Karnataka, on January 6, where a Hindu boy and his Muslim cousin-sister were assaulted by a mob, assuming them to be a couple. The victims endured severe injuries during the assault.
Former Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai condemned the incident, questioning CM Siddaramaiah’s silence and urging clarification on the state government’s stance regarding moral policing. The disturbing incident has reignited discussions on the need for stringent measures against such acts of violence and intolerance.
