Student suicide: Parents join protest, demanding accountability of school authorities

Parents of a 16-year-old Class 10 student, who committed suicide after allegedly facing mental harassment, along with others, staged a protest on Monday, demanding justice for their son and strict action against those responsible for his death.

The protesters assembled outside St Columba’s School on Sunday displaying placards reading “Justice for the child” and “No student harassment” and raising slogans demanding accountability from the teachers and administrative staff named in the complaint. They emphasised the need for a decisive action to prevent recurrence of such incidents in future.

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Reema Sharma, a parent, voiced deep concern over the loss of the lone child, stressing that such incidents should never be taken lightly. “Students are going through an extremely difficult phase. They are vulnerable at this age, such cases must be prevented,” she said.

Another parent said the school environment had become increasingly difficult for students and urged teachers to be more supportive. The grieving families had named four teachers, she noted, and demanded an impartial investigation into the matter.

A schoolmate of the deceased student shared that the boy had been “so distressed that he didn’t even go back home”. The friend added that he had written his suicide note at a metro station before taking the extreme step.

One of the protesting parents said although children may need to be reprimanded at times, personal bias or constant scolding crosses the line between reprimand and harassment. “There are thousands of children like him. This should not happen to anyone,” she added.

The family of the deceased, along with the protesters, urged the authorities to arrest the accused and take swift action to ensure accountability within the school system.

According to police, the boy jumped off the Rajendra Place metro station platform at 2:34 pm on Tuesday. He was taken to BLK Super Speciality Hospital, where he was declared dead.

The police informed about the suicide note the boy left before taking the extreme step naming several teachers, who held responsible for his mental distress, calling for strict action, apologised to his mother and brother and requested for the donation of his organs.