An FIR has been filed against 11 people in connection with forcefully converting a Hindu youth to Islam in Hubballi city, police said on Sunday.

According to police, 26-year-old Sridhara Gangadhara, a resident of Yadavanahalli in Maddur taluk of Mandya district was forcefully converted. He has been named as Mohammad Salman.

Police said that Sridhara is a private company employee and was going through a financial crisis. He had shared it with one Attaur Rahman who took him to a mosque in May in Bengaluru.

Sridhara was locked up in the mosque and ‘Khatna’ was performed forcefully and was forced to eat cow meat. They also took his signatures on empty papers regarding the religious conversion.

After ‘Khatna (circumcision)’ was performed, Sridhara was taken to Tirupathy, Puttur, Bhuvanagar mosques of Andhra Pradesh and given him training of Islam.

They threatened him to convert at least three persons every year to Islam. He was given a pistol and photos were taken. The accused threatened him that he would be projected as a terrorist if he failed to listen to them, police said.

They transferred Rs 35,000 in his account and asked him to follow their orders. The incident came to light when he went to the police station after being assaulted by a gang of unknown persons in Bhairidevarkoppa in Hubballi recently. He had come here as his Facebook female friend called him over to meet, police said. Further investigation is on.

(The story has been published via a syndicated feed with a modified headline)