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Journalism of Courage
The Delhi High Court has sought a status report on the investigation into the suicide of a Class 10 student of the prestigious St Columba’s School in central Delhi.
The father of the boy has petitioned the court asking that the investigation be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) or a Special Investigation Team (SIT).
The teenage student had jumped to his death at the Rajendra Place Metro station on November 18, leaving behind a note saying “mental harassment” by his teachers had driven him to take his own life. In the face of protests led by the boy’s family, the school placed four teachers under suspension, and the Delhi government set up a “high-level” committee to investigate the incident.
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna of the High Court issued notice to Delhi Police on Thursday (December 4). The boy’s father, represented by advocate Pritish Sabharwal, informed the court that police had recorded the statements of the parents only on December 3, and they remained unaware if the suspected teachers had been called to record their statements.
The father also objected to the case being given to a male investigating officer (IO) instead of a woman officer.
The father has alleged that the investigation “appears to be biased to the extent that it is protecting the accused persons even when they have been named in the suicide note”.
The note “clearly denotes that the level of mental harassment which was caused to his son [and which] led him to commit suicide”, which falls within the defiinition of the offence of aiding and instigation, the plea says.
The father has accused the police of “acting under influence and pressure”. He has pointed out that it had taken more than four hours to register the FIR, and has alleged that police had attempted to dictate its contents by asking the father not to mention the name of the school.
According to the plea, the transfer of the probe is “essential” in view of the boy’s last wish that action be taken against the teachers who had harassed him, and “to safeguard other students who may be subjected to torture, harassment or gaslighting”.
