A Hindu girl from Goa who came to Panjab University for her studies was allegedly influenced by a group of Kashmiri students to convert to Islam. Under their persuasion, she adopted the name Ayesha, becoming part of what authorities suspect is a wider religious conversion network linked to Agra.
As per media reports, Ayesha went on to create several WhatsApp groups aimed at collecting funds and stayed in touch with key individuals through these platforms. She reportedly received support from Abdul Rehman, the alleged mastermind of the network, who was arrested in Delhi. The police investigation has uncovered multiple details about her involvement.
Kashmiri students allegedly facilitated the religious conversion of a Hindu girl from Goa. Originally known as SB Krishna, she hailed from Goa and enrolled at Panjab University in 2020 to pursue an MSc in Data Science. During her time at the university, she developed close ties with a group of students from Kashmir, who gradually influenced her by promoting the practice of Namaz and encouraging her to wear a burqa.
Under their influence, Krishna was eventually persuaded to travel to Kashmir, where she stayed with the students for several days. Unaware of her whereabouts, her concerned family filed a missing person report in Delhi. After an extended period, Krishna—by then going by the name Ayesha—returned to Delhi on her own, reportedly because she did not feel comfortable in the Valley.
After her return, the girl’s family took her back to Goa and confiscated her mobile phone, cutting off her contact with friends and individuals linked to the alleged conversion network she had previously associated with. However, six months later, she fled again—this time to Kolkata—where she formally converted to Islam and adopted the name Ayesha. It was in Kolkata that her deeper involvement with the group began. She reportedly started raising funds to support conversion-related activities and used the collected money to further the group’s objectives.
Abdul Rehman, who was recently arrested by police in Delhi’s Mustafabad, was initially believed to be the key figure behind the conversion network. However, during interrogation, a startling revelation emerged — the real mastermind is Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui, a Muslim cleric currently serving a life sentence.
Siddiqui was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in 2021 in connection with a large-scale religious conversion case. In 2024, he and eleven of his associates were sentenced to life imprisonment. Despite being behind bars, Siddiqui is alleged to have continued directing operations through Abdul Rehman.
