‘Heartbreaking wake-up call’: Delhi education minister on suicide case

A suicide note found in his bag named teachers and the principal, alleging ill treatment and blaming them for his condition.

Calling the death of a 16-year-old Class 10 student of St Columba’s School a heartbreaking wake-up call, education minister Ashish Sood has asked Principal Brother Robert Fernandes to share an internal review of the incident. In a letter sent to the school on Monday, the minister said students today face unprecedented emotional pressure and urged the school to adopt a proactive support system.

Police said the boy jumped at 2.34 pm and was rushed to BLK Super Speciality Hospital, where he was declared dead. (PTI)

“St Columba’s is a venerable institution with a distinguished legacy. Yet, even the finest schools must constantly evolve to meet the emotional and psychological needs of today’s children,” he wrote in the letter, which HT has seen. The minister added he would “appreciate your reflection on how we can jointly strengthen the emotional wellbeing framework within the school.”

The intervention comes days after the student jumped from the Rajendra Place metro station building in West Delhi on Tuesday. Police said he jumped at 2.34 pm and was rushed to BLK Super Speciality Hospital, where he was declared dead. A suicide note found in his bag named teachers and the principal, alleging ill treatment and blaming them for his condition. Police registered an FIR based on the note, and the Directorate of Education formed a five-member high-level committee to examine the circumstances that led to the “unfortunate and untimely death” of the student.

The boy’s father joined students and parents at a protest outside St Columba’s School on Monday, demanding justice and the arrest of those named. “I am going to speak to the school management today. There is a meeting with the Joint CP this evening. The same is happening in every school, but children do not speak due to pressure from the administration. The school did not even pay him any respect,” he told PTI.

Police said that two of the teachers named in the FIR were questioned on Monday morning. “We asked them about the drama class and what all happened. They said that they didn’t do anything and were not guilty. They said they didn’t even scold the boy,” said an officer on condition of anonymity. They added that rest of the two staff including the headmistress will be questioned soon.

In his letter, Sood highlighted the need for early identification of student distress, mental health sensitisation for teachers, peer support systems and open communication channels. “I therefore write to you with a simple but earnest counsel to work together to build an ecosystem in schools that goes beyond regulations,” he wrote.

“An ecosystem in which a child never hesitates to share anxieties, teachers are trained to spot signs of silent suffering, peer support systems are strengthened, and emotional literacy is given as much importance as academic excellence.” He said the incident should become a “turning point” for all schools.

Reflecting on the tragic incident, the minister quoted Abraham Lincoln’s famous letter to his son’s teacher in his note to the prinicipal.“He will have to learn, I know, that all men are not just, all men are not true. Teach him that for every enemy there is a friend,” the education minister quoted. “Try to give my son the strength not to follow the crowd when everyone else is doing it...Teach him to listen to all men, but teach him also to filter all that he hears on a screen of truth, and take only the good that comes through.” the minister added.