BJP Leader Highlights Concerns Over 'Love Jihad' in Odisha

BJP leader Peeyush Mohanty raised alarms over alleged 'love-jihad' in Odisha, emphasizing the government's efforts to combat it. He claimed the rescue of 5,000 children by Odisha's police. Meanwhile, lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay termed it a national issue, involving alleged demographic and cultural shifts in India.

In a recent statement, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Peeyush Mohanty addressed the contentious issue of alleged 'love-jihad' in Odisha. Speaking to ANI, Mohanty accused individuals of orchestrating plots designed to manipulate young women under the guise of romance to facilitate illegal conversions.

Mohanty highlighted a significant crackdown by the Odisha police, claiming the rescue of 5,000 children from different states, including a girl reportedly abducted from Puri and taken to Kerala. The abduction involved a man initially pretending to be someone named Jairam but later identified as Irfan. This, he said, underscores the seriousness of the situation, with authorities taking swift action.

Adding to Mohanty's claims, senior advocate Ashwini Upadhyay argued that the issue extends beyond Odisha, labeling it a national crisis that purportedly affects over 500,000 girls annually. According to Upadhyay, this phenomenon is part of a greater effort to alter India's demographic and cultural landscape through well-coordinated strategies involving infiltration and forced religious conversion.

(With inputs from agencies.)