Second arrest made in class 11th student ‘love jihad’ case:Accused allegedly raped girl in Maaz Khan’s car; links to ‘Machhli Gang’ surface

Another crime linked to the Yasin Machli gang—allegedly involved in MD drug smuggling, love jihad cases and land grabbing—has surfaced in Bhopal. Police on Sunday arrested Maaz Khan, the younger brother of jailed gang member Monis Khan, in connection with the Khanugaon love jihad case. The case was registered on January 2 at Kohefiza police station following a complaint by a minor Class 11 student. The victim alleged that she was raped inside a car in the Khanugaon area, pressured to convert her religion, and that obscene videos of her were recorded and circulated. Police had earlier arrested the main accused, Osaf Ali Khan (19), on January 3 and sent him to jail. With Maaz Khan’s arrest on Sunday, police said the black-glass Thar vehicle used during the crime belonged to him and that he was aware of the entire sequence of events. Maaz’s elder brother, Monis Khan, is currently out on bail in an MD drug smuggling case. Maaz, meanwhile, claims to be an operator of a high-profile gym in the city. Head constable suspended for alleged collusion In a related development, DCP Zone-3 Abhinav Chaukse suspended Kohefiza police station head constable Gyanendra Dwivedi for allegedly striking a deal to present Maaz Khan in court and sending him to jail without seeking remand. It is alleged that the deal was finalised at a luxury hotel. Following Dwivedi’s suspicious conduct, Kohefiza TI Krishna Gopal Shukla submitted a report to the DCP on February 7, based on which disciplinary action was taken. Osaf raped student in Thar Osaf, accused of rape and love jihad, is a 12th class student. His father is a doctor while his mother is a teacher in a government school. According to Kohefiza Police Station TI Krishna Gopal Shukla, Osaf often came around the school to meet the student’s friend. Through this friend, he got acquainted with the victim. Last July, the accused called the victim on the pretext of showing her around Bhopal and took her to a deserted area in Khanugaon. There, inside the car, the accused raped the student. When she protested, he silenced her by giving false promises of marriage. Demanded one lakh rupees by showing video Osaf had secretly recorded a video of the rape without the victim’s knowledge. After some time, he threatened to make the video viral and demanded 1 lakh rupees from the student. Fearing defamation, the student somehow arranged 40 thousand rupees and gave it to the accused. Showed video to friends after blocking number Even after taking 40 thousand rupees, Osaf’s blackmailing continued. He kept pressuring for physical relations repeatedly. Fed up, the student blocked him on social media and phone, then Osaf harassed her by calling from different phone numbers. When the student didn’t agree, Osaf showed the private video to her friends. After this, the student reached the police station with help from her cousin and Hindu organization members to file a complaint. Pressured for religious conversion, forcibly made her recite prayers The victim had told police that Osaf pressured her to convert religion. She was also forcibly made to recite religious prayers several times. Police have seized Osaf Ali Khan’s mobile phone, which is undergoing forensic examination.