Ahmedabad stabbing case: Outside school gates, anxious parents, curious onlookers demand answers

The situation was brought under control after the arrival of the police which could be seen stationed inside in the evening as well while white-gloved experts from the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) inspected the spot inside the gate, where the victim had collapsed, for evidence.
Outside, worried parents and curious onlookers could be seen discussing the incident.

One of the parents, whose two sons study at this school, said, “On Tuesday, I had picked up my boys from the school. It was only later in the night that I learnt what had transpired here.”

The parents said they had received a message on their class WhatsApp groups on Wednesday, informing that the school was shut for a day. The parents said there was no mention of the tragedy in the message. They said they learnt about the murder from other parents or through the news.

Among the people gathered outside is a teacher from another school whose children used to study here. “I withdrew my children from here because this area is not good. There are people who are like gundas. Some people also do drugs. It was not safe,” said the teacher.

Another parent echoed his sentiments. “The school is not the problem. It is this locality that is the problem.”

This parent, though, admitted he had not heard about any such incident in the school in the past. He said he got to know about the stabbing incident early on Wednesday. “Today morning, my daughters didn’t go to school and I later learnt why. I was surprised to know this as I had not heard anything of this sort happening at the school before. My kids are picked up from the classroom directly by the van driver. They have never complained about the teachers as well.”

The names of the parents have not been disclosed to protect their identity.

Another parent told the Indian Express, “I believe that this is a good school but I think they should have rigorous standards for admitting students. The background of parents should be checked and their interviews taken to make sure that those of criminal minds don’t make the cut.”

Said another parent, “We learnt about the incident yesterday (Tuesday) from other parents and today morning, we came to know the school was closed because the boy had died. While I haven’t heard about any such incidents at the school earlier, it does make me wonder why the school didn’t immediately get medical help for the boy.”

Several other parents too asked why the victim, who walked back to the back gate of the school before collapsing, was not provided immediate medical aid and why the school waited for the parents to take him to hospital.