Long before Zaheer Khan and Sagarika Ghatge, there was Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi and Sharmila Tagore. Muslim men married Hindu women and the public was enthralled by their marriages. The dazzling Pataudis and Khans were well protected by celebrity status and social power, and no one accused them of love jihad.
But the story is very different for ordinary citizens who choose to marry outside their religion. They remain at the mercy of the state and vigilante squads because they aren’t well-known. Akhila Ashokan or Hadiya married Shafin Jahan and faced years of torment before the Supreme Court finally ruled in 2018 that ‘the right to marry a person of one’s choice is integral to Article 21.” In spite of this, Read More
