When 24-year-old Ameena Begum from Hyderabad boarded the flight to Dubai, she did not anticipate what was in store.

At Dubai airport, when Begum passed through customs-check, she was arrested by authorities for carrying a bag of illegal drugs. According to Begum and her mother Sultana, who is in India fighting for her daughter’s cause, the bag was given to her by the travel agent in India before she took the flight. The agent had asked her to handover the bag to someone in Dubai. Begum swears being innocent and totally unaware of the contents of the bag.

Now in jail, Begum has been pleading innocence, while her mother has approached the Ministry of External Affairs, requesting them to bail her daughter out of the current crisis and bring her back to India. Begum’s family has also made a plea to the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Indian Consulate in Dubai, urging the quick release of Begum.

Begum left for Dubai as the travel agent had promised her a job at a beauty parlour. Investigations are on. – editor@nrifocus.com