An interfaith wedding function in Maharashtra's Vasai was cancelled after Suresh Chavhanke of Sudarshan News linked it to Delhi's Shraddha Walkar murder case and called it 'jihad', according to reports.
Chavhanke also used the hashtag "Act Of Terrorism" in the tweet sharing the invitation of the interfaith wedding reception in Vasai. Linking it to Shraddha's murder in Delhi, he termed it "Love Jihad".
"In our Aaftab's Vasai, now 'Imran and Divya' is going to happen. The invitation is public. After Aaftab of the same place chopped Shraddha in 35 pieces in the heart-wrenching crime, how is this going to happen? #LoveJihad_ActOfTerrorism #LoveJihad #Shraddha," said Chavhanke on Twitter in Hindi.
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Love Jihad is a term right-wing Hindu organisations often use to refer to their belief that Muslim men marry or enter into relationships with non-Muslim women —mainly Hindu women— with the only intention of converting them to Islam.
Shraddha, 26, was allegedly killed by her live-in partner Aaftab Poonawalla, who is reportedly a native of Maharashtra's Vasai. The two met in Maharashtra on a dating platform and began a relationship. After Shraddha's family reportedly objected to their relationship, the two moved to Delhi. They moved to their South Delhi's Mehrauli home in May and, within days, they had an argument over marriage. Within days of the argument, Aaftab allegedly killed Shraddha and chopped her body into 35 parts and disposed off the parts in Delhi's forests.
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The reception in Vasai tweeted by Chavhanke was scheduled for Sunday, but the families cancelled it after they got disturbed over details being made public, reported Newslaundry.
"They were receiving calls all day and seemed disturbed. They cancelled the function at my venue and I returned their deposit. It was because of the function invite that was leaked to the public," Newslaundry reported the venue's manager as saying.
The Times of India reported that the family of the bride was being harassed and was being asked to give a fridge as a wedding gift. It was a reference to the fridge allegedly used by Aaftab to store the chopped body parts of Shraddha so they don't decompose before being disposed off.
"The invitation card went viral on social media platforms with trolls asking the bride's father to gift her a refrigerator...The couple and their families were reportedly flooded with calls that scared them," reported ToI.
The report added that no police complaint was filed.
Since Aaftab and Shraddha were from different faiths, some quarters have raised the Love Jihad angle in the murder case.
This is not the first time that Chavhanke has been in the news for objectionable comments on Muslims. Earlier, he ran a program on 'UPSC Jihad', which was based on the alleged conspiracy to ensure entry of Muslims in government services through the Union Public Services Commission (UPSC) examinations. Recently, he also called Maulana Abul Kalam Azad a "jihadi" and said he was not an Indian.
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"How was a person who was not of India made Indian Education Minister and given Bharat Ratna? How was he made? The country fell to a joint conspiracy of jihadis and British. How can we have National Education Day on the name of a hunter? The decision of the previous [Congress-led UPA] government should be changed," said Chavhanke on Twitter in Hindi.
In a separate tweet, Chavhanke said, "Dear Education Minister, nation wants to know the exact role of the first educational minister in the conspiracy to destroy the nationalist interpretation of history in our country. Please stop celebrating his birthday as National Education Day. We have more eligible rishi, munis, and gurus."
