After the conversion, sexual exploitation and harassment racket that came to light in TCS BPO in Nashik, Maharashtra, now a shocking case of conversion has come to light from the sub-capital Nagpur as well. Here, Riyaz Faizal Qazi, who runs an NGO named ‘Universal Multipurpose Society’, has been arrested on charges of sexual harassment of female employees, pressure for forced conversion and cyber stalking.
Seeing the seriousness of the matter, Maharashtra Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and intelligence agencies have also stepped into the investigation. Authorities are now closely investigating the organization’s funding sources, its history and possible foreign ties.
The main complainant in this case is the 23-year-old administration and HR head of the NGO. According to the FIR, after celebrating the victim’s birthday on July 18, 2024, accused Riyaz Qazi called her to his cabin. There he disconnected the CCTV connection and hugged the victim against her will and kissed her on the forehead. The accused told the victim, “I don’t want to leave you today.” The victim kept silence at that time due to fear of losing her job, taking advantage of which Qazi started molesting her again and again when she was alone.
Investigation has also revealed that Riyaz Qazi used his NGOs operating with names like ‘Fikr Foundation’ and ‘Padhe Hum, Padhaye Hum’ to put pressure on women for conversion.
According to the victim, the NGO’s assistant project manager, who is the victim’s elder sister, was also forced to wear clothes that covered her entire body. Additionally, during field visits she was forced to repeat Islamic prayers to stay safe.
Other female teachers working in NGOs have also complained that despite being non-Muslims, they were pressured to follow Islamic customs.
Accused Riyaz Qazi took the help of social media to keep an eye on the activities of women employees and volunteers. He created a fake account on Instagram using the name of the victim and his own so that he could track their every move.
Not only this, when some women decided to leave the NGO, Qazi called their families and defamed their character. On April 13, he called the mother of a former employee and addressed her daughters and colleagues with derogatory terms like call girls and prostitutes.
Senior Inspector of Mankapur Police Station, Haresh Kalsekar said that the court has sent Riyaz Qazi to police custody till April 23. So far three women have come forward with formal complaints, and the number is likely to increase. He said, “We are investigating this matter from every angle. ATS is investigating from where this NGO running in the name of social service was getting money and whether its purpose was only conversion and exploitation.”
This incident in Nagpur is reminiscent of the racket that came to light at TCS BPO in Nashik, where a group of Muslim team leaders targeted Hindu female employees aged between 18 to 25 years. There too, cases of insulting Hindu deities, forcibly feeding non-vegetarian food and pressurizing for religious conversion were reported. These cases coming up one after the other in Maharashtra are pointing towards some big conspiracy.
Riyaz Qazi has been booked under sections 74 (outraging the modesty of a woman), 302(1) (hurting religious sentiments), 356(2) (defamation) of the Indian Justice Code (BNS) and section 66-B of the IT Act.
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