Lucknow, June 2 (IANS) A woman residing in the Sairpur region of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, has accused a man named Manzoor Ali, who is presently serving in the Armed Forces, of holding her captive and raping her for five years, as well as coercing her to change her religion.

Based on the woman’s complaint, an FIR was registered on May 30 against Manzoor Ali, his brother Kamal, and their relative Salman. On Monday, the police arrested the prime accused, Manzoor Ali. According to investigators, the victim was originally married and living in the Sitapur district.

In March 2021, she visited her maternal home in Saerpur. It is alleged that late one night, Manzoor Ali, a resident of Mahangukheda in the Lakhimpur Kheri district, abducted her after forcing her to inhale an intoxicating substance.

Subsequently, the accused held her captive and repeatedly raped her. He kept the victim confined at various locations and exerted continuous pressure on her to change her religion. According to the FIR, whenever the accused went on duty, he left the victim in the custody of his relative, Salman, and his brother, Kamal. It is alleged that these two individuals also kept her hidden and threatened her with death.

The victim stated that a few days ago, with the assistance of a neighbour, she managed to contact her father by phone. Following this, her father arrived at the location and brought her back to their home in Sairpur.

This development follows another recent high-profile case involving Nida Khan, the key accused in the Nashik TCS religious conversion case. Khan was arrested on May 8 in Maharashtra.

Khan, who is accused of orchestrating forcible religious conversions at the Nashik unit of the IT giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), had been on the run after multiple cases linked to the ongoing probe were registered against her.

According to the police, Khan had been hiding for four days at a flat in Kaiser Colony, located in the Naregaon area of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district, alongside her parents, brother, and aunt. The arrest was executed jointly by the Nashik SIT, the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Police Commissionerate, and the Crime Branch.

–IANS

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