Eighteen-year-old Sadiya Sheikh has been scarred for life after she was falsely branded a suicide bomber. Her mother says that this ruined her daughter’s and their family’s life. While speaking to The Quint, Safiya Sheikh said that the media called her daughter a culprit without any concrete evidence.
Sadiya Sheikh, who went to Srinagar on 16 January to take admission in a college was detained and interrogated by J&K Police on suspicion of suicide bombing.
Within a few days, Sadiya’s name and photograph were flashed across the national media. She was labelled a suicide bomber who was plotting an attack on Srinagar.
Sadiya Went to Srinagar to Be a Doctor
Sadiya Sheikh, a resident of Pune, went to Jammu and Kashmir on 16 January with her mother to enrol in a nursing course. A few days later, Sadiya's mother returned to Pune while the teenager stayed back at her friend's house in Srinagar.
According to Sadiya's mother, Sadiya wanted to be a doctor since childhood. After clearing her Class 12 board exams, Sadiya appeared for the Maharashtra CET, but could not clear it. But before enrolling in colleges, ATS officials gave wrong information to the college administration about Sadiya's association with the ISIS .
'There Is a Conspiracy Behind Defaming Her'
Sadiya's mother alleged that someone is trying to defame her 18-year-old daughter and says that her photograph should not have been used by the media.
Sadiya and her mother claims that when she saw her name and photograph being flashed on TV Channels, Sadiya’s family wanted her to return to Pune immediately. But the 18-year-old took a cab instead and went to Srinagar to visit a police station. According to her, the police stopped her car at a checkpoint on her way and took her to a police station after checking her bag.
Both, however, claim that the J&K police did not initiate her arrest, instead Sadiya’s visit to the police station to prove that she was being falsely implicated urged the police to detain her.
After a detailed investigation when the cops didn’t find any evidence against her, Sadiya was released.
She wasn’t tortured by any police officer there, but she definitely went through severe trauma... She is not in a state to think about anything since the incident happened with her.Safiya Sheikh, Sadiya’s mother
Even though Sadiya has been relieved of all charges, the incident has left them scarred for life, said her mother.
(This story has been translated from Quint Hindi.)
Video Translation: Hera Khan
Video Editor: Mohd Ibrahim
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)