A shocking incident has emerged from Uttar Pradesh’s Hardoi district, where a 24-year-old Hindu woman has said that she was raped by a man made Haider with the help of her own Muslim friend Reena Bano.
The victim says they raped her, blackmailed her, and attempted to convert her to Islam. The nightmare for the victim started in December 2024 and continued for months, leaving her scared and helpless.
The Hindu victim and her ‘friend’ Reena Bano both attend the ITI college of Hardoi, and the girl met Reena at college. They soon became friends and began to hang out with each other like good friends do. But things went dark when Reena asked her to visit her home in the Lohani near the Pihani police station. Upon arrival, Reena led her to a room where Haider, Reena’s relative from Prayagraj, was already inside the room.
As soon as she entered, Reena slipped out and closed the door. Haider also had a gun, and he said that if she uttered a word, he would kill her, and then he raped her. He also recorded the entire incident on his phone. The girl cried out for help, but nobody came. When Reena returned, Reena and Haider started blackmailing her and warned that they would show the video to her family and put it on the internet if she did not obey them.
The blackmailing went on for seven months. They used to phone her every two weeks or so and ask her to meet them, and they snapped more pictures or made more videos of her so that they could hold her hostage.
Haider also instructed her to abandon Hinduism and become a Muslim, and marry him even though he was already married. She attempted to refuse, but fearing the video would be released, so she kept her silence.
Finally, after seven months, on 11th July, 2025, she visited Shahabad police station and complained, revealing everything regarding the rape, blackmail, and coercion to convert. The police also acted promptly and arrested Reena Bano on the same day. Haider, however, remains evasive, and the police are trying to trace him.
Circle Officer Anuj Mishra of Shahabad revealed that the case is registered under Uttar Pradesh’s anti-conversion law. The police are making every effort to arrest Haider and ensure the woman receives justice.