Insha Mushtaq (16) was apparently sitting in her home at Shopian in July 2016 when pellets fired by security forces hit her, leaving her fully blind.
New Delhi: Insha Mushtaq, the face of Kashmir’s pellet victims, now shines in her Class X board examination.
The 16-year-old was apparently sitting in her home at Shopian’s Sedow village in July 2016 when pellets fired by security personnel hit her, leaving her fully blind. She had undergone surgeries in Delhi and Mumbai but her vision could not be restored.
Insha’s teachers gave her the full credit for clearing the J&K board exam, the results of which were declared Tuesday.
“I am very happy. There were difficulties but I worked hard. Now, I can think about studying medicine,” Insha told ThePrint.
A Class IX girl, who is an orphan, had come forward to write the exam on her behalf.
“She was depressed initially, but her resilience and hard work were incredible. The credit should only go to her,” Naveed Ahmed Mir, a medical representative who gave her tuitions, told The Print.
Another volunteer, Muzamil Bhat who works for NGO National Association for the Blind, taught her Braille.
“We would teach her and she recorded everything on her phone. She continuously listened to those recordings to prepare for her exam,” Mir said.
There is a clerical error in her mark-sheet but Mir said the JK Board of School Education had confirmed that she passed in all subjects and that the error would be rectified after a written request.
Insha’s father Mushtaq Ahmed Lone said he would do anything to make her happy.
“She wants to study medicine and go to school in Srinagar. She is thankful to all, especially her teachers, who helped her to write the exam,” Mushtaq told The Print.
Insha chose music instead of mathematics due to learning problems caused by her blindness.
“Insha faced difficulties because of the side-effects of medicines she has been taking,” Mir said. “But she can definitely go ahead with her studies if she is given proper facility. In Shopian, there is no such facility.”
Her success was celebrated across social media platforms. Former chief minister Omar Abdullah tweeted, “A special shout out to young Insha who was blinded by pellets during the 2016 protests & has cleared her 10th exams today. May Allah keep rewarding your hard work & efforts.”
Hundreds of youths were blinded by pellets fired by security personnel during the 2016 protests in the Valley.