Padum (Zanskar), January 15:
The Zanskar Buddhist Association (ZBA) has submitted an urgent representation to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Zanskar, raising serious concerns over the alleged abduction and wrongful confinement of a young Buddhist woman from the region.
According to the representation, the woman has been missing for several days, and her family, after conducting extensive searches and inquiries among relatives and acquaintances, fears that she may have been abducted and is being held against her will by unidentified individuals. The Association has expressed apprehension that she may have been subjected to psychological manipulation and misinformation, rendering her unable to contact her family or seek help.
The ZBA further alleged that the incident may be part of a broader and disturbing pattern in which marriage is allegedly misused as a tool for fraudulent religious conversion of girls belonging to the Buddhist community. The Association claimed that such conversions are often carried out through deception, coercion, inducement, or misrepresentation, rather than through free, voluntary, and informed consent.
Highlighting legal alternatives, the Association pointed out that interfaith marriages can lawfully be solemnized under the Special Marriage Act, 1954, without requiring conversion of either party. However, it alleged that in several such cases, only the woman’s religion is changed, raising questions about the intent and legality of such actions.
Terming the issue a matter of serious public concern with potential implications for communal harmony in the region, the ZBA urged the administration to ensure the immediate restoration of the woman to her family and to conduct a fair, impartial, and time-bound inquiry into similar cases.
The Association has also demanded strict legal action against those allegedly involved and called for the enactment of a stringent anti-conversion law in the Union Territory of Ladakh to prevent forcible or fraudulent conversions through marriage or allurement.
Copies of the representation have been forwarded to the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh, the Deputy Commissioner and CEO of LAHDC Kargil, senior police officials, and Buddhist community leadership for necessary intervention and information.
