Lucknow:
Arrested on Holi for vanadalising Mayawati's posters, these high school students were released after eight days on Wednesday. The charge of destroying public property against them was finally dropped, but not before the Chief Minister herself stepped in.
''I spoke to the Lucknow DIG and told him they are young boys, and for this small mistake they should have just been scolded and let go especially as their exams are going on. I instructed him to immediately release the boys and be careful not to take such stern action in future,'' said Mayawati, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.
The students say they were studying for their board exams in the school hostel and had stepped out late night to get something to eat.
''We were coming back from the dhaba and had almost reached the school when two policemen on bikes accused us of vandalising a hoarding. We were not even near it, in fact we were walking on the opposite side of the road,'' said Shibu Singh, one of the arrested boys.
The school says the students were wrong to step out without informing anyone, but the police action was unnecessary.
''The action taken against the students was excessive. They should have let the school administration handle the matter,'' said Colonel Samarveer Singh, Principal, Sainik School.
For a petty crime that was not even confirmed, these students were kept in the lock-up, in the middle of their exams.