COVID-19: Four AMU scholars, who escaped quarantine, traced in Kashmir

Four Kashmiri scholars, who had fled from Aligrah Muslim University (AMU) amid quarantine period without informing the varsity administration, were traced by authorities in Kashmir and shifted to hospitals for examination.

A letter issued by the medical authorities at the AMU says three scholars from Kashmir fled the isolation wards, without the permission of medical practitioners and authorities. The PhD students had recently returned from the UAE and went missing from the isolation ward, where they were quarantined. Local medical authorities had even written to the Dean Student Welfare at the AMU for help in tracing them.

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After receiving the communiqué, authorities in Kashmir swung into action and traced the trio in their native villages from north and south Kashmir's Anantnag district. While three of them belonged to north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, the fourth one is from southern Anantnag district.

Deputy Commissioner, Baramulla, GN Itoo said the two scholars were traced and shifted to a hospital for examination. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Sopore, Javid Iqbal also confirmed that the boy from the Warpora area of Sopore in Baramulla was traced by his team.

SSP Anantnag Sandeep Chaudhary said the scholar, who had fled from AMU, has been traced and shifted to hospital. However, some reports indicated that the four scholars, who had allegedly left the AMU for lack of facilities and reached Kashmir on Friday night, voluntarily reported at hospitals.

VIP privilege in Kashmir was hampering fight against COVID-19. A 67-year-old woman who tested positive for coronavirus, had reportedly escaped mandatory quarantine on arrival from Saudi Arabia as she walked out of the Srinagar airport using the VIP exit gate after her son-in-law, an IPS officer, had intervened.

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Sources said, like her, most VIPs and their relatives escape mandatory screening and official quarantine after their arrival at Srinagar airport. Singer Kanika Kapoor, who also tested positive for coronavirus, faces an FIR for failing to declare her travel history.