Four Delhi University students were arrested and later released on bail on Sunday for “chasing, misbehaving and overtaking” Union minister Smriti Irani’s car in a drunken state in the Capital on Saturday. The police said the accused were returning from their friend’s birthday party and were under the influence of alcohol when they chased Irani’s car and tried to overtake it near the Myanmar Embassy in Chanakyapuri locality, NDTV reported.

One the students has issued a public apology on behalf of the group to the minister. “We agree that we have flouted the rules. We were making a video to be posted on Instagram and the music in the car was loud. When we overtook the car, we did not know that Smriti Irani was there in it. We would have not done this if we knew that it was Smriti Irani’s car,” one of the accused said. They requested the minister to forgive them as they have “their life ahead of them”, ANI reported.

They were arrested for stalking and using words and gestures to “outrage the modesty of a woman”, an officer told PTI. “They have been held for speeding, drink driving and misbehaving with the minister and her staff,” Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police RP Meena told IANS. Irani’s security staff stopped the students and handed them over to personnel at the Police Control Room van in the area.

All four Delhi University students – Anand Sharma, Avinash, Shitanshu and Kunal – are in their early twenties, according to NDTV. They were taken into custody and produced before a court this morning. “Their medical examination has confirmed the presence of alcohol in their blood,” a senior police officer told PTI.

On Twitter, Chairperson for the Delhi Commission for Women Swati Maliwal said, “Good Smriti Irani acted against the men who chased her. It encourages others to report [such incidents]. It is important that the Centre and state work together for women’s safety in Delhi.”