Uttar Pradesh Police on Sunday arrested a physiotherapist Chandni Qureshi and her father Islam Qureshi in a case registered under the state’s anti-conversion law, following a complaint by UP businessman Devaraj Malik alleging that his son Ayush Malik was coerced into changing his religion, adopting a new identity and distancing himself from his family as part of an alleged conspiracy linked to financial gain and property control.

According to police, the arrests were made after Devaraj Malik approached authorities in Shamli claiming that his son, a B-Pharma graduate who helped manage the family’s medical store, was influenced into a relationship with Chandni Qureshi, which later led to his alleged religious conversion and identity change.

The FIR states that Ayush Malik first met Chandni Qureshi in 2018 while receiving treatment for a leg injury at a local hospital, after which the two developed a relationship over time. It further alleges that she and members of her family gradually influenced him to embrace Islam.

According to the businessman’s complaint, his son was taken to Delhi in 2023, where he was allegedly converted to Islam and given the name Mohammad Ali.

The complaint further claims that a nikah ceremony was performed in Delhi, although police sources have said that no marriage certificate has been recovered so far during the investigation.

According to police sources, Ayush Malik has allegedly adopted strict Islamic practices, including growing a beard, offering five-time prayers, and changing his attire.

Devaraj Malik has alleged that the conversion was part of a broader conspiracy to gain control over the family’s assets worth crores and approached police after becoming aware of the alleged change in his son’s religion.

Police said a case has been registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act.

Along with the two arrested accused, several other family members and two unidentified clerics have also been named in the FIR. Investigators said that teams have been formed to trace other accused persons.

"We have constituted an SIT and LIU teams are investigating the matter. We will conduct a thorough enquiry to determine how far the links of this case extend and what its deeper aspects are. Further action will be taken accordingly," SP Narendra Pratap Singh told media.

Source: India Today