The founder of a celebrated Indian non-governmental organization that provides shelter to couples in interfaith or intercaste relationships has been arrested on suspicion of extorting and confining people in his care.
Love Commandos, cofounded by activist Sanjoy Sachdev in 2010, has been the subject of international documentaries and celebrity fundraising campaigns for its work providing safe houses to Indian couples at risk of being murdered by their families in so-called “honor killings.”
It has reportedly rescued thousands of couples who have been threatened by their families for falling in love with someone outside their caste or religion, or who are rejected by their parents for other reasons.
Police on Tuesday commenced a criminal investigation against 58-year-old Sachdev on allegations of extortion, intimidation and confinement. He was arrested outside the organization’s shelter in Delhi.
The arrest followed a raid on the shelter by the Delhi Commission for Women.
“Two women came to us complaining and crying,” commission Chairwoman Swati Maliwal said on Wednesday. “We visited the shelter home and found it in a horrible condition.”
Two couples on the premises had claimed that their identity documents had been taken away, and that they have been forced work and asked to provide money, she said.
“They were told: ‘If you leave, we’ll call your parents and tell them your whereabouts,’” Maliwal said.
The couples accused Sachdev of drinking alcohol on the premises and pressuring the men to join in, she said.
Sachdev has yet to be presented before court. His lawyers have been approached for comment.
Abuse and poor conditions have been discovered at dozens of shelter homes across India in the past year, sparking protests and calls for better regulation.
The Love Commandos shelter was not registered under any legislation and was not subject to inspections, Maliwal said.
However, neither the state nor the central governments have provided any shelters for couples fleeing their families, leaving the commission in a bind, she said.
“It was very complicated for us yesterday [Tuesday], because we rescued these couples — who have been the subject of direct threats of honor killings from their families. We didn’t know where to send them,” she said. “There is no other shelter home.”
There were 69 honor killings in India in 2016, the most recent year for which data is available, Indian National Crime Records Bureau statistics showed.
However, the true rate is thought to be much higher, exacerbated by deeply patriarchal values and strong community systems based on caste and religion.
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