Fearless Preeti Pawar wins Olympic quota, assures India of a medal
Hangzhou (PTI): Indian boxer Preeti Pawar secured a quota for the Paris Olympics and also assured herself of a medal, moving into the women's 54kg semifinals of the Asian Games here on Saturday.
The 19-year-old put up a fearless display against Kazakhstan's Zhaina Shekerbekova, a three-time World Championship medallist and reigning Asian champion, to eke out a 4-1 win in the fiercely-fought quarterfinal.
Preeti started the bout on the offensive but her defence was broken several times by her more experienced rival. Unperturbed, the Indian teenager continued to pummel Shekerbekova to take a slender 3-2 lead in the first round.
Up against the experienced 33-year-old, Preeti fought a strategic bout as she moved off the center of the ring in the beginning of the second round with a long range jab.
In the last three minutes, the two boxers showered a lot of punches at each other but both were inaccurate. As the clock ticked, the fatigue kicked in for Shekerbekova, while Preeti continued to pepper her opponent with shots to take the win.
On Friday, Nikhat Zareen became the first Indian boxer to win an Olympic quota.
In the women's events, the semifinalists in the 50kg, 54kg, 57kg, and 60kg while the finalists in the 66kg and 75kg will qualify for the Paris Olympics.
The gold and silver medallists in each of the seven weight divisions in the men's event will receive Olympic quotas.
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Vadodara varsity staffer held for stalking, intimidating student
Vadodara, Jan 12: An associate professor of a university in Gujarat's Vadodara has been arrested for allegedly stalking and intimidating a woman student, police said on Sunday.
Mohammed Azhar Dheriwala, an associate professor of Hindi at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda (MSU), allegedly harassed the student and threatened to end her career, an official from Sayajigunj police station said.
Dheriwala, who has been associated with MSU for 23 years, was arrested on Saturday night.
Police inspector Z N Dhasura said the accused was earlier suspended based on the recommendation of the University's internal complaints committee (ICC) of the women's grievance redressal cell (WGRC) after another student accused him of sexual harassment.
The complainant, a second-year Master of Arts student, has alleged that Dheriwala approached her on the afternoon of January 4 and asked her to accompany him to his house.
When she refused, he allegedly threatened to end her career and even followed her to her residence, she stated in her complaint.
Dhasura said a case was registered under sections 78 (stalking), 352 (intentionally insulting someone to provoke a breach of peace) and 351 (2) (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS).
