Last week a couple, married in July was arrested, in UP, under the law purported against love jihad along with the elder brother of the bridegroom.

On Monday, the woman who was taken to a shelter home in Moradabad by the Uttar Pradesh Police on Saturday after arresting the man she was with, under the anti-conversion law passed last month, returned to his home. Pinki was allowed to leave after she told a magistrate that she and Rashid Ali, 22, got married back in July. She added that she was 22 and wanted to go with his family.

Speaking to media after the arrest of Rashid, on Saturday morning, Pinki, who is three months pregnant, had said that the two of them were going to get their marriage registered when the police caught them. Rashid’s elder brother Saleem, 25, who was with them was also arrested. The police said that Pinki had no proof of the marriage and that they were acting on a complaint by Pinki’s mother that Rashid had forcibly converted and married her daughter.

Additional Superintendent of Police, Moradabad, Vidya Sagar Mishra said, “The girl in her statement before the magistrate said that she was born in 1998 and that she and Rashid held a nikah on July 24 in Dehradun.” Mishra added that Pinki said that she had converted and wanted to return to Rashid’s family.

Dr Nirmala Pathak, Acting Chief Medical Superintendent of Moradabad Mahila District Hospital, where Pinki was examined, said that the foetus could be seen clearly in her ultrasound report and seemed to be fine. “We have decided to go in for a Transvaginal Ultrasound Scan to get a more accurate condition of the foetus,” Pathak said. There had been reports earlier that Pinki had suffered a miscarriage, which was denied by officials.

While Rashid and Saleem continue to be in jail under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Ordinance, 2020, the Moradabad police said that they would seek legal opinion on Pinki’s statement, including that she was a major and that the wedding took place before the new law was passed, to decide what to do. The police said that another thing that they would look into is if the conversion followed “legal procedures”.

Soon after she was brought to the government-run home in Moradabad, Pinki had complained of pain in the abdomen, and was admitted to Mahila District Hospital. She was released on Sunday morning, but in the afternoon, again complained of pain and was taken back to hospital. On Monday, Pinki was brought before the magistrate in the morning, but the hearing had to be delayed as she complained of uneasiness. She was checked up and brought to court in the afternoon for recording of her statement.

“All details, including Pinki’s claim of nikah and conversion, would be verified. Documents related to the claim would be checked. The police will also get a statement of the girl’s family members and others,” Senior Superintendent of Police, Moradabad, Prabhakar Chaudhary said.