Kashmiri lawyer bags prestigious Kofi Annan scholarship to study at Oxford

Mirza Saaib Beg, a Kashmiri lawyer, has become the first Kashmiri to be awarded the Kofi Annan scholarship at Mansfield College, University of Oxford. He was also awarded Oxford-Weidenfeld-Hoffmann scholarship at Blavatnik School of Government to study public policy.

Srinagar: A Kashmiri man has become the first from the valley to receive the prestigious Kofi Annan scholarship at Mansfield College, University of Oxford and the Oxford-Weidenfeld-Hoffmann scholarship at Blavatnik School of Government to study public policy.

Hailing from South Kashmir's Anantnag district, Mirza Saaib Beg is a lawyer. Beg studied at National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR), Hyderabad.

The Kofi Annan scholarship is valued at Rs 75 lakhs and will cover Beg's all expenses, including his education at the University of Oxford, his living and a monthly stipend.

Beg used to work with as a legal consultant with a government organisation but after the amendment to Article 370 in August 2019, he wrote few articles criticising the government's action in Jammu and Kashmir.

His organization had raised concerns about his viewpoint after which he resigned from the post.

As a law student, Beg was the only Kashmiri to have been elected as president of the student's union at NALSAR University of Law. He was also awarded the Bar Council of India scholarship.