Delhi student’s suicide: On his last ride to Metro station, teen spoke of ‘torture by teachers’
On Friday, speaking to The Indian Express about that journey, Deepshika said she was seated in the e-rickshaw with her son, who studies in Class 8 at St Columba’s, and another student from the institution when they were joined by the 16-year-old boy.
It was around 2.15 pm on November 18. She saw that he was “shaking” and deeply agitated as he hurriedly got into the e-rickshaw outside school. He urged the driver to drive faster towards the Metro station, and then burst into sobs. When she asked why, he complained about his teachers in school. No words could calm him. As her journey ended before his, she gave him a Rs 10 note for his ride, and he thanked her.
This was how Deepshika, a 45-year-old homemaker, recalled that turbulent journey from St Columba’s School in Central Delhi’s Ashok Place to Gole Market, where she got down.
Soon after they parted, around 2.45 pm, the distressed Class 10 student of St. Columba’s School died after jumping from the Rajendra Place Metro Station platform to the street below. On Thursday, four teachers were suspended by the school after an FIR was registered on a complaint from the boy’s father.
On Friday, speaking to The Indian Express about that journey, Deepshika said she was seated in the e-rickshaw with her son, who studies in Class 8 at St Columba’s, and another student from the institution when they were joined by the 16-year-old boy.
“‘Bhaiya, jaldi chalo… RK Ashram Metro Station’, he told the driver. The moment he sat down, he burst into sobs. Concerned, I turned to him and asked, ‘Beta, what happened? Why are you crying?’ His answer was blunt and completely unexpected. ‘Aunty, please strike your child’s name from this school. I made a huge mistake by taking admission here’,” Deepshika recalled.
“When I gently asked him what was wrong, he said, ‘I am in Class 10. There are just ten days left for the board exam…but the teachers are torturing me. My father is a businessman…but these teachers…’ He went on to say that the ‘torture’ had continued throughout the year and that for every small issue, the teachers insisted that his parents be called to the school,” she said.
“He said his father worked out of state and asked, while crying, ‘Will my parents do their jobs or keep coming to school?’ I asked him who those teachers were, and he named four. Trying to console him, I said, ‘It’s okay. There are many teachers in the school, not just these few. And it’s only two more years’,” Deepshikha said.
“When my son asked him about the teachers, the boy began crying louder,” she said.
According to Deepshika, who hails from Samastipur in Bihar and has been a Delhi resident for 19 years, she got down at Gole Market just before the RK Ashram station, which is three stops away from Rajendra Place.
“I saw him still crying inside the e-rickshaw, and asked, ‘Beta, do you have money for the ride?’ He shook his head. I handed him a Rs 10 note. He thanked me in a soft voice,” she said. “If I had even the slightest idea that he was going to take such a drastic step, I would have stopped the e-rickshaw, taken his parents’ number, and contacted them.”
Sophiya Mathew is a Correspondent at The Indian Express, based in New Delhi. She joined the Delhi bureau in 2024, and has specialization in Integrated Multimedia Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), Chennai.
Professional Background
Core Beats: Her reporting is primarily focused on the Environment and Education.
Specialization: She has gained recognition for her ground-level reporting on the Yamuna floodplains and the socio-economic challenges faced by those living on its banks. She also focuses on the disparities in Delhi's education system, ranging from elite private schools to government institutions and refugee education.
Recent Notable Articles (December 2025)
Her recent work has been heavily centered on Delhi's severe winter pollution crisis and the government's regulatory responses:
1. The Air Pollution Crisis
"A tale of two cities: Delhi govt schools choke in bad air, private classrooms set up air filters" (Dec 20, 2025): A high-impact feature contrasting the "Clean Air Bubbles" in elite schools with the reality of government school students who are exposed to an equivalent of 17 cigarettes a day due to outdoor exposure.
"Delhi sees season's worst air day, second worst December AQI in nearly a decade" (Dec 15, 2025): An analytical report on the meteorological patterns trapping pollutants in the NCR.
"Delhi bans non-BS VI vehicles from outside: Why curbing vehicular pollution is key" (Dec 17, 2025): Explaining the science behind targeting specific vehicle vintages to lower particulate matter.
2. Enforcement & Regulations
"No fuel at pumps in Delhi without valid PUC certificate from December 18" (Dec 17, 2025): Breaking the news on the environment ministry's strict "No PUC, No Fuel" policy.
3. Education Policy
"Law to regulate school fee in Delhi risks becoming procedural, say parents" (Dec 13, 2025): Investigating the loopholes in the new Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Bill, 2025.
"Monsoon Session: Private school fee regulation Bill cleared after four-hour debate" (Aug 9, 2025): Covering the legislative passage of the controversial fee hike regulation.
Signature Style
Sophiya is known for her observational depth. Her reporting often includes vivid details from school corridors, hospital waitlists, or the banks of the Yamuna to illustrate how policy failures affect the city's most vulnerable residents. She is a frequent expert guest on the 3 Things podcast, where she explains the complexities of Delhi’s environmental laws.
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