The secretary of a private missionary residential school in Purulia and local TMC leader Jagannath Mahata has been arrested by Kenda police in connection with the suicide of a Class IX student, Shambhu Kumbhakar, in the hostel room.
The student was taken to the nearby Chakoltore PHC, where he was declared brought dead.
The student allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling of his hostel room on Saturday night. The family came to know about the incident only on Monday morning, through his friends. His mother has alleged that a teacher had beaten him mercilessly on Saturday. According to her, all his friends visited him in his room on Sunday, and after they left, he took the extreme step.
Abhijit Banerjee, SP of Purulia, stated that the post-mortem of the Class IX student was conducted at Deben Mahato Government Medical College and Hospital in Purulia. “We have started an investigation after receiving a complaint, and one person has already been arrested,” he said.
The Kenda-Tamna state highway was blocked for about nine hours by agitating locals demanding justice and the arrest of the guilty. The family members told the media that the school authorities had not yet disclosed the real cause of death. The victim’s house is barely 200 metres from the residential school campus. Angry locals and family members blocked the road, surrounded the school, and even assaulted some of the teachers.
The residential school, established in 2008, is run by a committee, whose secretary, the accused teacher, is also a member of the TMC district committee in Purulia. Protesters have demanded the immediate arrest of the school secretary.
Moyna Murmu, BJP district committee leader of Purulia, has alleged that the schoolboy must get justice and that the accused should be punished according to law.