Student’s suicide case: Clean chit to teachers, principal

MUMBAI: The principal and teachers cannot be held responsible for a Kendriya Vidyalaya student's suicide, the Bombay high court has ruled. A division bench of Justices Ranjit ore and Bharati Dangre recently quashed an FIR filed after the student from Dehu Road committed suicide by jumping into a quarry. The principal and four teachers had been booked for abetment of suicide after the parents of the deceased student blamed them. The student had jumped to his death after he was suspended by the school authorities for allegedly beating up his classmate.

"Having gone through the FIR, there is absolutely no material to show intention on the part of the (principal and teachers). There is nothing to show that they abetted or instigated the deceased student to commit the suicide," said the bench. "It is unfortunate that the young boy committed suicide. However, (the principal and teachers) cannot be said to be responsible," said the judges and ordered that the FIR should be quashed.

The court was hearing a petition by principal Sojan Puthenparampil John (55), physical education teacher Fattesing More (52), Hindi teacher Shradha Pathak (36), Maths teacher Pratibha Tomar (37) and English teacher Bindu Kumar (46) challenging the FIR filed against them. Advocate Aniket Nikam contended that there was no material furnished by the police to show that the principal and teachers had intention to instigate the student.

The HC agreed. "The offence of abetment involves mental process of instigating a person or intentionally aiding a person in doing of a thing. Without a positive act on the part of the accused to instigate or aid in committing suicide, the person cannot be compelled to face trial," said the judges. "It is necessary for the prosecution to at least prima facie establish that the accused had an intention to aid or to abet the deceased to commit suicide. In the absence of availability of such material, the petitioners cannot be compelled to face trial under section 307 of IPC," the court said. On July 4, while returning from tuitions the student jumped off a cliff. In his suicide note, he said the teachers and principal were responsible for his death as they had suspended him and made him sit outside the staff room.