New Delhi/Mumbai: Two suicide cases in India’s most prominent cities have set alarm bells ringing among parents and reignited the debate on how to understand and handle teenagers.
Shourya Patil, a 16-year-old student of Delhi’s St Columba’s School, jumped off the platform of the Rajendra Place Metro station on Tuesday, leaving behind a note asking for his organs to be donated.
He alleged prolonged mental harassment, naming a few teachers in the note.
A group of students gathered outside the school on Thursday, holding posters remembering Shourya. They said Shourya had spoken about having been tortured for the last six months.
The students claimed that Shourya had spoken about feeling tense in the hours leading up to his death, and slammed a number of teachers for having “body shamed” and “insulted” children at the drop of a hat. One of the boys revealed Shourya was mocked by a teacher during dance practice.
Shourya’s father alleged that his son had been struggling being with how he was treated in school.
“He used to tell me and my wife that teachers scolded him for every small thing and emotionally hurt him. We complained verbally many times, but they never stopped,” his father Pradeep Patil told PTI.
With the father blaming the school for his son’s death, it remains to be seen whether police take action against teachers and school authorities.
Thrashed for speaking in Hindi, not Marathi
The Delhi suicide was followed by another teenaged boy taking his own life after he was allegedly assaulted by 4-5 people in a local train, for not speaking Marathi.
The victim, identified as Arnav Laxman Khaire, was a first-year science student and was travelling to his college when he asked a fellow passenger to move forward in Hindi, as per reports.
“Arnav was travelling to his college in Mulund on a local train on Tuesday morning when the assault took place between Kalyan and Thane stations,” said Kalyanji Gete, Assistant Commissioner of Police.
The rattled teenager got off at Thane and took another train to Mulund. According to the victim’s father Jeetendra Khaire, Arnav was under tremendous mental stress following the assault and was unable to focus on his studies.
Arnav called his father and told him about the incident after returning from college early. On returning home from work in the evening, Jeetendra found the door of his son’s room locked from inside.
He opened the door with the help of neighbours only to find his son hanging in the bedroom. He was declared on being rushed to a hospital.
Jeetendra said 4-5 passengers confronted Arnav over not speaking Marathi and then o brutally thrashed him.
Arnav’s father has filed a case at Kolsewadi police station and an investigation has been launched after a case of accidental death was registered.
