Image of 23-year-old woman allegedly murdered by husband in Maharashtra given communal spin

Context

A headless body of a woman was found in a bag on June 2 at a beach in Maharashtra’s Mira Bhayandar. The image of the woman’s hand with a tattoo resembling Hindu religious symbols — trishul and om — went viral on social media.

This image was also shared on Twitter by Radharaman Das, vice president of ISKCON Kolkata, with the caption, “A 25 year old Hindu girl’s headless body recovered from sea stuffed in a suitcase. It’s a WAR against Hindu’s. Everyday they are killing our daughters & sisters (sic).” Though the tweet was later deleted, a narrative spread online that a "Hindu woman was targeted."

Another account called ‘content writer’ tweeted, “#woman body found without head at #mumbai she has #om and #shiv #tattoo on her hand. Is it another case of #lovejihad #Hindus wake up and unite plus we can see #muslim continuously attacking #Hindu religion and culture and people in #India (sic).”

‘Love jihad’ is a conspiracy theory popularised by the right-wing in India that claims Muslim men entice Hindu women into relationships on the pretext of marriage for religious conversions.

However, the claims made in the post are false.

In fact

The Indian Express reported that a headless body of a woman was found inside a bag in Mira Bhayandar last week. The body was spotted by the beach cleaning staff, who informed local police. The report added, “a hand of the body sported a tattoo depicting a trishul (trident) along with a damru (pellet drum), and an Om symbol.”

The woman, identified as 23-year-old Anjali Mintu Singh, was allegedly killed by her 31-year-old husband, Mintu Singh, over suspicions of an illicit affair, according to the police. His brother, 35-year-old Chun Chun Rambrij Singh, was also arrested as an accomplice, the Indian Express report added. Mid Day and Deccan Herald reported the same details. According to the Mid Day, the incident happened on May 24, but the body was found on June 2.

Sagri Uttan Police Station Inspector Dadaram Karande confirmed to Logically Facts there is no communal angle in the case. “There is no Hindu-Muslim angle here. The woman was killed by her husband. He was suspicious of her character over an illicit relationship. He has been arrested, and an investigation is underway. There is no love jihad angle here,” Karande said.

The Verdict

A case of a husband allegedly murdering his wife has been shared with the false claim that it was a case of “love jihad” and that a Muslim man murdered a Hindu woman. However, the police have ruled out a communal angle and told us that both the accused and the victim are Hindu. Therefore, we mark this claim as false.