The Uttar Pradesh Police on Friday booked three Kashmiri students of the Indian Veterinary Research Institute in Bareilly for allegedly forwarding controversial comments against the Indian Army on a WhatsApp group after the February 14 Pulwama suicide attack, PTI reported.

Senior Superintendent of Police Muniraj said a case was filed against the three women at the Izzatnagar police station on Friday evening based on a complaint by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad’s Bareilly Unit Vice President Amit Sharma.

Muniraj said that the police’s intelligence unit is searching for the person who had originally posted the controversial comment, which the girls forwarded along with their own comments on a WhatsApp group consisting of other students. The incident took place on February 16.

Superintendent of Police Abhinandan Singh said the students were booked under Section 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code and another section of the Information Technology Act, The Times Of India reported. “We are investigating and collecting evidence in this case,” he said.

After the students’ union lodged a complaint with the institute, authorities launched a probe into the matter. Indian Veterinary Research Institute Director RK Singh said they had blocked the fellowship and scholarship of two of the girls. The name of the third student, who had enrolled for a masters degree and has been absent since December, was struck off.

There have been several reports of Kashmiri students being attacked in the aftermath of the Pulwama attack, in which 40 jawans of the Central Reserve Police Force lost their lives.On February 20, members of the youth wing of the Shiv Sena attacked some students from Jammu and Kashmir studying in Maharashtra’s Yavatmal.

After the Supreme Court on Friday directed the Centre and states to take steps to ensure the safety and security of people from Jammu and Kashmir, the government issued an advisory to all states and Union Territories.

The University Grants Commission had also asked vice chancellors of all universities affiliated to it to ensure the safety and security of Kashmiri students on their campuses. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday denounced the attacks.