Balrampur Islamic conversion racket: Jamaluddin used code language with his associates, referred to Hindu women as ‘Project’ and conversion as ‘soil tilling’
New layers are emerging each day in the Balrampur Islamic religious conversion racket, operated by Jamaluddin alias Chhangur Baba, who was arrested last week. The multi-crore Islamic conversion racket, being run on massive foreign funding, used to target vulnerable Hindu women, including widows, poor women, and those lured into relationships by Muslim men, for conversion.
According to a Jagran report, Jamaluddin, the mastermind of the coordinated racket, used to talk in code language with his associates. He used to refer to Hindu girls as “Project” and to conversions as “Mitti Palatna” (Soil Tilling). The code word “Kajal” meant giving mental trauma, and “Darshan” implied meeting with himself.
To convert Hindu women to Islam, Jamaluddin prepared an elaborate strategy. He used to pay Muslim men for luring vulnerable Hindu women. He fixed an incentive for converting Hindu women based on their caste. Muslim men working for him used to adopt fake Hindu identities to target Hindi women. They used various ways to contact their victims, which included creating fake profiles with Hindu names on social media. When their victims developed an emotional attachment with them, they would ask them to convert to Islam as a precondition to marry them.
In some cases, they used to make lucrative offers to their targets, such as promising jobs, scholarships, free education in Islamic educational institutions, and sending them to foreign countries for a better life. Chhangur Baba portrayed himself as a saint and brainwashed vulnerable Hindu women by demeaning the Hindu religion.
The Nepal Nexus
Jamaluddin’s Islamic conversion racket was not limited to Balrampur. It was spread across the districts along the India-Nepal border. He had set up several madrasas and religious institutions in these districts, all running on foreign funding. He used to target children from poor backgrounds in these districts through his institutions. In addition to that, Jamaluddin was in constant touch with some international NGOs and religious institutions in Nepal, which he used to visit frequently. Police had earlier uncovered a financial funding network of over 100 crores linked to the Gulf countries.
Jamaluddin and his conversion racket
Jamaluddin, originally from the Rehra Maafi village in the Balrampur district, used to sell gemstones and rings. He was arrested by the UP Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) on 5th July for running an Islamic conversion racket. His son Mehboob was arrested by the authorities in April this year. The initial investigation into the conversion racket was led by a Special Task Force (STF) of the UP Police. Based on the initial investigation, a case was registered by the ATS against 10 people, including Jamaluddin.
The ATS investigation into the cases led to the busting of the Islamic conversion racket, which involved foreign funding of crores funnelled into 40 accounts. Jamaluddin amassed huge wealth by running the racket. He owned luxury cars and acquired properties across the states. Investigation has revealed that Jamaluddin had close ties with Mukhtar Ansari’s criminal syndicate.
Jamaluddin’s name had earlier come up in December 2022 after a Dalit Hindu family in the Balrampur district accused Chhangur Baba and his associates Neetu (Nasreen) and Naveen (Jamaluddin) of beating them up and forcing them to convert to Islam.
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