Interfaith marriage triggers row in Raj

An inter faith marriage here has led the Hindu woman's family to allege the alliance to be a case of "love jihad", prompting a Union minister to demand a law in Rajasthan against the alleged practice of marriage for religious conversion.

Union MoS for Agriculture Kailash Chaudhary demanded the law in the state despite the girl in a video statement on social media and to the police asserting she married on her own accord and police too rejecting the allegation. The controversy erupted after Bikaner resident Manisha Dudi, 18, married Mukhtiyar Khan, 22, last month after a brief love affair, prompting the woman’s family to issue a statement on social media, terming the alliance to be a case of "love jihad".