A court in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh has sentenced renowned Islamic scholar Maulana Kaleemuddin Siddiqui and Umar Gautam, along with 12 other scholars, to life imprisonment, while 4 other scholars have been given a 10-year prison sentence.
According to Indian media, the scholars from Uttar Pradesh were sentenced in 2021 in a case related to religious conversion.
Surprisingly, the life sentence was handed down under IPC Section 121A, which pertains to anti-state crimes.
Those sentenced include Maulana Umar Gautam, Arshan Mustafa, Adam, Abdul Manan, Muhammad Atif, Mufti Qazi Jahangir Qasmi, Kauser Alam, Faraz Babulah Shah, Irfan Sheikh, Salahuddin Zainuddin Sheikh, Dheeraj Govind, Rahul Bola, Muhammad Kaleem Siddiqui, Muhammad Saleem Siddiqui and Muhammad Saleem. Sarfaraz Ali Jafri and Abdullah Umar are also included.
Maulana Kaleem Siddiqui and Umar Gautam, under whom hundreds of Hindus have converted to Islam, were released on bail last year after serving two years in jail.
On the other hand, Maulana Umar Gautam and Abdullah Umar were also sentenced to five years in prison and fined INR 25,000 under Section 35 of the FCRA.
Similarly, other scholars were sentenced to an additional 3 years of rigorous imprisonment and fined INR 10,000 under Section 8 of the Uttar Pradesh Unlawful Religious Conversion (Prohibition) Act, 2021.
The charges include sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) such as Section 417 (Cheating), 120B (Criminal Conspiracy), 153A (Promoting enmity between different groups), 153B (Prejudicial allegations), 295A (Deliberate acts to outrage religious feelings), and 121A (Conspiracy).
The court order stated that the time already spent in jail by the convicted individuals will be counted as part of their sentence.
Muslims in India have been facing hardships due to Modi-led BJP government as they are booked in fake cases. Extremist Hndus target Muslims and accuse them of religious conversion like fake cases.
Recently, according to the media reports, the extremists Hindus did not allow Muslims to celebrate Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi in a village in India.
