Kareena Kapoor (Photo : Reuters)
The image of Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor appeared on the cover of magazine Himalaya Dhwani, showing the actress with half her face concealed behind a burqa in a message against "love jihad," Indian Express reported.
Himalaya Dhwani is a publication released by Durga Vahini, the women's wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, and this time the cover of their latest issue is a message against "love jihad." The morphed image of Kapoor was captioned with the words "dharmantaran se rashtraantaran," which meant "conversion of nationality through religious conversion."
Reports stated that the Durga Vahini and Vishwa Hindu Parishad are campaigning to "reconvert" Hindu women who are married Muslim men and involved in a "love jihad."
The publication, which is pro-Hindutva, claimed that the "love jihad" was a way for Muslims to seduce Hindu women into their religion through marriage and romance, according to First Post.
Such is the case for Kapoor, who married Muslim actor Saif Ali Khan in 2012 after five years of courtship, though the Durga Vahini made no explicit statements that they were targeting the actress. In fact, Prakash Sharma from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, claimed that Kapoor was free to sue them if she wished, as the reason they chose her was mainly because she was a celebrity.
Rajni Thukral, the northern India regional coordinator of the organization, also said, "The youth try to emulate celebrities. They think if she can do so, why not us?"
It seemed to be in response to Kapoor's support for "love" and not "love jihad." She once claimed that, "Love is a feeling. It's an emotion. That's why I don't believe in Love Jihad. I believe in the feeling of love."
Durga Vahini made headlines last year when it was featured in the documentary "The World Before Her," where viewers were given a glimpse into the world of the organization. They set up camps for women and girls where they are taught how to defend themselves and shoot, encouraged to get married and taught to support their husbands in lieu of pursuing a career.
