A 21-year-old female Kashmiri student who was arrested along with a male friend for allegedly trying to snatch... Read More

PUNE: A 21-year-old female Kashmiri student who was arrested along with a male friend for allegedly trying to snatch a cop’s revolver recently has discontinued her studies and headed back home.

Farah Sheikh, a final year BBA student of Sarhad , a city-based institute, told TOI . “My parents told me to leave my studies and return. I love Pune and would have liked to have stayed on. If my family permits in future, I will return to pursue my education,” she said.

Earlier in the day, Farah expressed worries about staying on in Pune to former Army chief General V P Malik when he came to visit Sarhad.

“My parents do not want me to continue my education in the city, especially after coming to know about my arrest. I am leaving,” she told him.

Police said Farah and her friend, Shaurya Dandriyal , had been told by a patrolling team not to loiter in the Bharati Vidyapeeth area on the intervening night of April 8 and 9.

Police alleged that Farah slapped a woman sub-inspector and tried to snatch her revolver. However, Sarhad authorities and other Kashmiri students said Farah had told them that she was being falsely implicated.

One of the Kashmiri students told TOI, “Though she was disturbed after the incident, she wanted to continue studies and find a job in the city. However, her parents feared police trouble.” Speaking to TOI, Sarhad president Sanjay Nahar said, “Police could have handled the case in a different manner, especially the lower-rank personnel who were present on the day of the incident. They are completely unaware about the current situation in Kashmir. They should learn how to handle such cases in a sensitive manner.”

Nahar said Farah hails from Srinagar where her father runs a hotel. “We tried our best to convince her parents to let her continue her education. However, they were firm,” he said.

Senior officials of Pune police and Sahakarnagar police station denied any of their personnel had pressurized Farah. They said an internal probe has been ordered. “We are looking in the allegations levelled by the woman. An officer of the rank of assistant commissioner of police is conducting the inquiry,” DCP (zone-II) Pankaj Dahane said.

