New Delhi: It was already past 7.30 pm when Divya left the tuition centre near the Navada metro station. Her mother Sathi was waiting for her outside the centre as usual. The mother - daughter duo took an e - rickshaw and reached their house at Phase 5 in Om Vihar at around 8 pm. As they were walking towards the house, a man who was coming from the opposite direction pushed Sathi down and quickly snatched her gold chain.

Meanwhile, Divya didn’t wait for a moment and ran after the thief. She chased the thief through the busy streets flooded with speeding vehicles. Finally, she was able to run down the thief and retrieve the gold chain. Now, 14-year-old Divya, a class nine student at Vikaspuri Kerala School has become a star for her incredible courage and presence of mind.

Sathi Sunil, who works as a staff nurse at the Ramakrishna Mission Hospital in Karol Bagh is a resident of Phase 5 in Uttam Nagar. The gold chain and locket that was snatched by the thief weighed almost around a sovereign. Meanwhile, Sathi said that more than losing the chain she was worried whether the thief would hurt her daughter. The people in the area had called the police when Divya caught the thief. However, Sathi told them that she was not interested in slapping charges in the thief, since she got the chain back. But, then the locket was found missing from the chain. Sathi who has been living in Delhi for over three decades is shocked by the incident.

For Divya, it is her training in karate that helped her muster the courage to go after the thief. She has been learning karate for the last five years and the training has given her the strength and energy to run after the thief. Divya is a disciple of Sheelu Joseph of Panjajanyam Bharatham Cultural Centre in Navada. Divya is also a student of music and dance here. Her sister Devika Sunil is a nursing student at Vrindavan Ramakrishna Mission Hospital. The family originally hails from Muttar in Alappuzha.