NIA To Probe Forced Conversion Of Kerala Woman, Attempts To Take Her To Syria For ‘Sexual Slavery’

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will investigate the alleged forced conversion of a woman in Kerala who had moved the High Court last year accusing her husband of forcing her to convert to Islam, forging documents to marry her and trying to take her to Syria to sell her off as a sex slave to the Islamic State (IS).

According to the women, identified as Akshara Bose, her husband Mohamed Riyas had taken her to Saudi Arabia and had plans to take her to Syria from there. She told the court that she had met Riyas, who is from Peringadi in Kerala, while she was studying in Bengaluru. She has accused Riyas of forcing her to have sexual relations with him and recording the act to blackmail her.

The woman, who is from Pathanamthitta and was brought up in Gujarat, has also accused Riyas of forging her Aadhaar card to register the marriage and forcing her to listen to sermons by controversial Islamist televangelist Zakir Naik, accused of terror funding and money laundering.

The centre has filed the affidavit in response to a petition filed by the woman seeking NIA probe. The NIA had earlier said that it was ready to probe the matter if the High Court wanted. The decision to hand over the case to NIA comes after the arrest of two persons earlier this month by Ernakulam police in connection with the case. The men – Fayas (24) and Siyad (48) – had reported helped Riyas.

With reports of youth from Kerala joining IS and cases of forced conversion making national headlines, the state has been under the scanner of investigative agencies for the past few years. The NIA is already probing the controversial Hadiya case and has submitted multiple status reports to the apex court in sealed covers.