The 16-year-old student of St Columba’s School in central Delhi, who died by suicide on Tuesday, allegedly faced prolonged mistreatment from teachers, according to his family.
The boy reportedly went straight from school to a metro station, still wearing his uniform, and jumped from a high platform near Rajendra Place Metro Station.
The victim, a Class 10 student, had allegedly been “mocked” and “ill-treated” by teachers for nearly a year, his family said. His father, Pradeep Patil, believes the final trigger was the threat of being expelled after the family raised complaints with the school.
According to him, his son was reprimanded and “publicly humiliated” on the day he died, after he slipped during a dance rehearsal on stage. When the teenager broke down, a teacher allegedly told him, "cry as much as you want, I don't care".
Speaking to NDTV, Pradeep said the school contacted him only after his son's death. "After my son's death, the principal called me and said 'whatever help you need, let us know and we will support you'. I told him I want my son back," he said.
NDTV further reported that the victim typically travelled by car, but on Tuesday he left the school through the back gate and went alone to the metro station.
The FIR filed in the case states that his purported suicide note named three teachers. The school has not commented so far.
The note also included repeated apologies to his family. "Sorry mummy, aapka itni bar dil toda, ab last bar todunga. School ki teachers ab hai hi aise, kya bolu," he wrote.
To his elder brother, he said, "Sorry bhaiya, I was rude to you, argued with you, disrespected you."
For his father, he added, "Sorry papa, I should have been a good person like you." The victim also asked his parents to donate his organs "is they are in a condition to work".
Pradeep Patil said his son had been complaining for months. "Whenever we would raise the matter with the school authorities, they would dismiss it by saying my son needs to focus during classes. They would say that his Math grades are poor and he doesn't like to focus on his studies," he said, as quoted by NDTV.
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