A 16-year-old Class 10 student from a well-known central Delhi school died by suicide at a west Delhi metro station on Tuesday afternoon, leaving behind a distressing note in which he accused four of his teachers and the school principal of driving him to the edge. His final appeal - that no other student should be treated the way he was - has triggered outrage among parents and students, and prompted a police investigation into alleged harassment on campus.
Police said they received a call around 3pm reporting that a boy had fallen from the metro station building. Still in his school uniform, he was rushed to a private hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.
A handwritten note recovered from his school bag has become central to the probe. In it, the boy describes months of alleged humiliation, scolding and what he called persistent “torture” by his teachers.
He wrote that his last wish was that no student should be treated the way he was, and said that four teachers he named in the note “must be punished”. He also apologised to his parents and older brother.
The boy’s father, a 48-year-old businessman from Karol Bagh, said his son had been studying at the same school since Class 2 but had begun complaining nearly a year ago about constant scolding over “petty issues”.
“Despite our insistence, the teacher continued to torture our son,” he told news agency ANI. According to him, the teachers repeatedly pressured the boy to score better marks and dismissed his explanations that he was trying.
{{/usCountry}}“Despite our insistence, the teacher continued to torture our son,” he told news agency ANI. According to him, the teachers repeatedly pressured the boy to score better marks and dismissed his explanations that he was trying.
{{/usCountry}}The father alleged that earlier on Tuesday, his son collapsed at school but was accused of faking it. “When he cried and said he had fainted, the teacher again said he was pretending. He couldn’t bear the humiliation,” he said, adding that the incident was described in the suicide note as well.
The family had planned to shift him to another school after Class 10 but had asked him to continue until board exams because the school has discretion over 20 internal marks.
As news of the death spread, parents and students gathered outside the school on Wednesday, accusing the administration of ignoring repeated complaints about teacher harassment. Four staff members – three teachers and one headmistress - were suspended on Thursday after police registered a case against them.
Investigators said further inquiries are underway.
Discussing suicides can be triggering for some. However, suicides are preventable. A few major suicide prevention helpline numbers in India are 011-23389090 from Sumaitri (Delhi-based) and 044-24640050 from Sneha Foundation (Chennai-based).