Noida school teen death: Chancellor, wife booked for murder

The incident had come to light on July 12, nine days after the girl’s death, when a video of her mother went viral. In the video, the mother had alleged that her daughter was a target of foul play and the hostel authorities had dubbed her death as a suicide case as part of a cover-up

The chancellor of a city-based private boarding school, has been booked by the Noida Police on Friday for murder and causing disappearing of evidence, along with his wife in connection with the death of a 14-year-old Haryana girl who was found hanging in the establishment on July 3.

A suicide note had been reportedly recovered at the spot in which the girl had alleged that no one was responsible for her death. (HT Archives. Representative image)

The incident had come to light on July 12, nine days after the girl’s death, when a video of her mother went viral. In the video, the mother had alleged that her daughter was a target of foul play and the hostel authorities had dubbed her death as a suicide case as part of a cover-up. A suicide note had been reportedly recovered at the spot in which the girl had alleged that no one was responsible for her death.

The family of the girl, who was a class 10 student, had filed a complaint with the local police in Haryana and also wrote to the state chief minister saying they suspect foul play in their daughter’s death and that she could have been murdered. Following this, the Noida police took suo motu cognizance of the matter and launched a probe into the incident.

A case was registered on Friday against the school’s chancellor and his wife at the Sector 49 police station, under which the private boarding school falls, under sections 302 (punishment for murder) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence) of the Indian Penal Code.

“A probe is underway. We are awaiting the result of the forensic examination of the alleged suicide note which was recovered from the spot. Meanwhile, statements of everyone concerned- the family, the suspects, the school staff, other students among others- will be recorded,” said deputy commissioner of police (DCP), zone 1, Sankalp Sharma.

The family of the deceased said they were against hushing up the matter, and how the school authorities allegedly forced to perform the last rites of their daughter girl without informing the police.

According to the mother, her daughter was in Class 10 and was studying at the school along with her younger sister and brother. The family had dropped the kids off at school on June 18 for their final exams.

“The way the school authorities tried to hide the whole matter shows that there was something wrong that happened. There was no reason for my daughter to take her own life. I just want them to be brought to justice for their role in her death,” said the mother.

According to the family members, they had received a call from their eldest daughter’s boarding school on July 3 to come to the school at the earliest. “They wouldn’t tell us anything. They simply asked us to come there at the earliest. We immediately rushed to the spot. What we saw their filled us with horror. Our daughter’s body was hanging from a fan. The hostel management took our phones away and told us that she had taken her own life. They even claimed that she had left a suicide note behind,” the girl’s mother had earlier said. The family had further alleged that the school forced them to sign a non-disclosure and the body was cremated, without the police being informed.

The police had earlier said that the school was wrong for not reporting the girl’s death to them.

The chancellor has, however, denied all allegations of foul play.

“Everything happened with the consent of the girl’s family. My wife and I don’t even live in the school premises. But we are cooperating with the investigation, and are ready to provide all information. The police have also checked the CCTV camera footage from near our house to verify our whereabouts from that day. We only came to the school after we found out about her death,” said Jayandra Prakash, the school’s chancellor.

Notes were also reportedly recovered from the girl’s school bag in which she had written about some “troubles” in her life.