Hindutva finds a new target – ‘gym jihad’

As sections of the media have reported, a new “jihad” has been unearthed.

Earlier this week, the Uttar Pradesh Police invoked the Gangsters Act and the Anti-Social Activities Prevention Act against 10 gym owners in Mirzapur, accusing them of waging “gym jihad”.

They were arrested in January and February for allegedly persuading Hindu women to train at their facilities, establishing physical relationships with them, recording compromising photographs and videos, and then using the images to pressure their targets into converting to Islam.

The police claim that the accused had ensnared more than 50 women between them. The authorities claimed that there are “sufficient grounds” for action to be taken against the Muslim men under the stringent Gangsters Act, which allows the authorities to seize properties.

But what are these grounds? Have the police found evidence against the gym owners, such as the objectionable photos and videos? Do they have statements from the 50 women?

These questions can only be answered through an impartial investigation. Establishing the facts takes some time. But that has not stopped Hindutva groups from adding another “jihad” to the ever-growing list of strategies Indian Muslims are claimed to have adopted in a “holy war” on Hindus.

The most prominent among them, of course, is “love jihad” – the purported campaign under...

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