In Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly, a 23-year-old Hindu woman has accused a man of pretending to be a Hindu engineer named “Raj Gupta” for over two years before allegedly pressuring her to convert to Islam after marriage.
The accused, identified as Qayyum from Sambhal district, has been booked along with his brother Akram Saifi after the woman approached police with detailed allegations of rape, threats, deception and coercion. Police say both accused are currently absconding.
According to the FIR registered at CB Ganj police station in Bareilly, the woman first met the accused in 2023 inside a temple in Gurugram, where she was working as a security guard.
The accused introduced himself as “Raj Gupta” and claimed that he was a Hindu engineer. The woman stated that his appearance and behaviour gave her no reason to doubt his identity.
The FIR states that Qayyum regularly wore a tilak on his forehead, tied a kalawa thread around his wrist and frequently visited temples to maintain the Hindu identity he had created.
The woman further alleged that he even operated his painting business under the name “Shri Shyam Painter” in Gurugram in order to appear Hindu and gain her trust.
Police documents state that the accused remained in contact with the woman for nearly two years while continuing to conceal his real identity.
प्रकरण के सम्बन्ध में थाना सीबीगंज, बरेली पर प्राप्त तहरीर के आधार पर सुसंगत धाराओं में अभियोग पंजीकृत किया गया है। पीडिता के बयान व मेडिकल की कार्यवाही प्रचलित है।
कृपया महिला संबंधी अपराध में पीडिता की पहचान उजागर ना करें, वीडियो बाइट/आवेदन पत्र को ब्लर कर पोस्ट करें।
— Bareilly Police (@bareillypolice) May 22, 2026
The complainant told police that she was emotionally vulnerable when she met the accused as her sister had recently passed away, leaving behind two children whom she was raising alone.
According to the FIR, the accused used this situation to emotionally connect with her. He allegedly told her that he loved children and was ready to accept responsibility for her late sister’s children after marriage.
The woman stated that she gradually trusted him due to his repeated promises of support and marriage.
After losing her job in Gurugram, she returned to Bareilly, but the accused allegedly continued speaking to her regularly and assured her that he would marry her.
The woman alleged that in March 2024, the accused took her to a hotel located on the Rampur highway where he raped her.
According to the complaint, when she later became pregnant and demanded marriage, the accused initially pressured her to abort the child.
The FIR states that after she threatened legal action, he agreed to marry her.
The marriage was reportedly conducted in a temple in Gurugram following Hindu rituals. The woman’s family members attended the ceremony and blessed the couple.
Photographs and videos of the wedding were later uploaded on social media.
The woman stated that the truth about the accused’s identity emerged after the wedding videos circulated online.
According to the FIR, the accused’s brother Akram Saifi called the couple to his flat in Modinagar after seeing the wedding photographs.
At the flat, the woman alleged, she was informed that “Raj Gupta” was actually Qayyum from Sambhal and that the Hindu identity and temple marriage had allegedly been used as part of a deliberate trap to lure Hindu women.
The complainant further alleged that Akram Saifi raped her inside the flat while Qayyum threatened her with a knife.
She stated in the FIR that when she screamed for help, Qayyum allegedly entered the room carrying a large knife and told his brother to “finish her.”
According to the complaint, the assault stopped only after neighbours became alert due to the noise and commotion from inside the flat.
It was during this incident, she alleged, that she finally learnt the true identity of the man she had married.
In February 2025, the woman gave birth to a daughter.
The FIR states that Qayyum and his family came to the hospital but allegedly refused to accept the child unless the woman converted to Islam.
She refused and later shifted to a rented accommodation in Bareilly’s CB Ganj area, where she began living separately while raising her infant daughter along with her late sister’s two children.
The woman alleged that despite living separately, the accused continued visiting her rented room, assaulting her and threatening to kill her if she did not agree to convert.
According to the complaint, he repeatedly pressured her to adopt Islam and return with him.
In another serious allegation, the woman told police that during a second pregnancy, the accused secretly administered abortion pills to her without her knowledge.
She alleged that the pills caused severe health complications and led to the loss of her unborn child.
The woman finally approached Senior Superintendent of Police Anurag Arya directly after earlier complaints allegedly failed to result in action.
Following the SSP’s intervention on May 22, 2026, CB Ganj police registered an FIR against Qayyum and Akram Saifi.
Police have booked the accused under charges related to rape, criminal intimidation, cheating, assault and concealment of identity.
Officials said teams have been formed to trace the accused, who are currently absconding.
Reports indicated that provisions of the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, may also be added during the investigation, as the law deals with religious conversion through coercion, fraud, misrepresentation or marriage under false identity.
The investigation is currently underway.
