Journalism of Courage
Protests erupted outside Ryan International School on Saturday after a Class 2 student’s dead body was found here on Friday. The seven-year-old boy’s throat was allegedly slit by the school’s bus conductor. Police said the conductor tried to sexually assault Pradyuman, the victim, in the school’s bathroom before killing him.
The killing triggered protests by parents of other students on Friday, who destroyed tables and glass panes inside the school’s premises, before Gurgaon police announced the arrest of the conductor, Ashok Kumar, who hails from Ghamroj village in Haryana.
Here are the live updates on the Gurugram school murder:
12:46 am: Lawyer of victim says they will approach the Supreme Court on Monday with a petition. Supreme Court advocate and relative of the victim Sushil Tekriwal said, “We are going to Supreme Court tomorrow.”
12:42 am: Varun, father of the victim alleged that the investigation into the case was being influenced to stop the truth from coming out, news agency ANI reported.
4.40 pm: Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar said he has directed the authorities to complete formalities within seven days. On the family’s demand for a high profile probe, he said, “Once we get the report, if the facts are not clear, we are ready for any kind of probe.”
4.30 pm: The victim’s mother said she wants a CBI enquiry into the matter. “Principal was indifferent when she came to the hospital, put her in jail. I want to know what happened to my child, I want CBI,” she said.
4.25 pm: Haryana PWD Minister Rao Narbir Singh visited the family of the seven-year-old boy and assured the parents that the probe will be carried out to their satisfaction.
4.15 pm: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has asked the school to file a report in the matter within two days. “Ryan International School has been asked to send a report along with FIR filed in this case within two days,” CBSE PRO Rama Sharma told news agency ANI. A fact finding committee has been set up to enquire into the matter and submit its report at the earliest, he said.
3.55 pm: The Police Commissioner also said a committee has been formed to adjudge loopholes in security arrangement and a report on the same is expect by Monday. On being asked whether the bus conductor is being used as a scapegoat in the matter, he said, “We are confident we will be able to satisfy everyone after concluding investigation.”
3.45 pm: Addressing a press conference, Gurugram Police Commissioner said the police will try to file charge sheet in court within seven days and will request for a fast trial. “Involvement of bus conductor is confirmed. If someone else is found to be involved as well, action will be taken against them,” the Commissioner said.
3.00 pm: Haryana Education Minister Ram Bilas Sharma has expressed sympathy with the parents of the victim, news agency ANI reported. Saying that he will be visiting Gurugram tomorrow, he assured that the “culprit will not be spared”.
2.45 pm: Members of the Bar Association of Sohna have decided not to appear on behalf of the accused in the Ryan International School murder case, as per reports by news agency ANI.
2.30 pm: The acting principal of Ryan International School Neerja Batra has said that after yesterday’s “tragic incident” the school authorities have taken up the review of security measures seriously. “Necessary measures are being reinforced with experts’ help. We are seeking advice from Police department to guide us,” the principal said.
2.15 pm: The Gurugram court has sent the accused bus conductor Ashok Kumar to a three-day police remand.
12.50 pm: Calling the incident unfortunate, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said that justice will be served. “It is like a warning to people and schools. Justice will be served for sure,” news agency ANI quoted him.
12.40 pm: Watch the video on the murder of a Class 2 student of Ryan International School:
12.20 pm: The Deputy Commissioner of Gurugram Police Simardeep Singh has said the acting principal of the school, Neerja Batra, has been suspended. He said the police has also taken action against the security agency of the school. A special committee is probing the matter, he informed.
12.10 pm: Enraged by his killing, seven-year-old Pradyuman’s relatives marched to the officer of the Commissioner of Police yesterday, demanding prompt action into the matter.
https://twitter.com/mohanreports/status/906098565730021376
12 pm: “My son had told me that the bus conductor would use the bathrooms. Does the school not take into account this kind of gross misconduct? The bigger culprits are the school authorities who mint money like an industry,” victim’s father Varun Thakur told Indian Express yesterday. Read more here.
11.55 am: In a statement, authorities of Ryan International School said that they have assured their co-operation to the Police in the investigation. “The police are investigating this matter and we have assured our full support and co-operation towards the investigation of the same. The perpetrators of this heinous crime must be dealt with appropriate action. Our hearts and prayers are with the family,” the statement said.
11.50 am: Relatives of the victim raised slogans against the school and Gurgaon Police yesterday for lax attitude in investigation.
https://twitter.com/mohanreports/status/906082063484280832
11.45 am: Our reporter on the ground Anand Mohan informs that the police are standing on guard as the protesters try to break through the wall.
https://twitter.com/mohanreports/status/906399397579079680
11.40 am: Congress leader Tom Vadakkan said the school must realise that the parents hand over their children with a sense of responsibility and belief that they will be safe. “If schools turn up to be graveyards or killing grounds it’s very sad,” he added.
11.35 am: Expressing shock over the seven-year-old boy’s murder, Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit demanded immediate action by the police. “This is a very shocking incident that an innocent child is being murdered in school. Police should take immediate action,” he said.
11.30 am: “There were two cuts on the boy’s neck. One was superficial but the other was long and deep, cutting almost the entire depth of the neck,” said Dr Deepak Mathur, who conducted the autopsy.
For pictures on Ryan International School murder, click here
11.20 am: Heavy security has been deployed at the school today after parents protested and vandalised the school property yesterday.
11.10 am – After the news of Pradyuman’s death spread on Friday, agitated parents protested against the school authorities for the alleged lax security, and also vandalised the school property. Police briefly detained five parents and later released them.
11 am – Shajumon Philip had left for office when he got to know about Pradyuman’s death. He immediately turned his car around and rushed to the school to get his daughter, who studies in the same school. When he reached, he found several children being rushed out by their parents. “There was a lot of confusion. Later I found out that someone had smuggled in a knife and killed the boy,” Philip said. Read more here.
10.55 am – According to the victim’s lawyer, action will be taken against the school management. “Action against school management is sure,” he said.
10.50 am – According to investigators, when the school’s gardener found Pradyuman’s body and raised an alarm, Ashok Kumar, the bus conductor, rushed forward and started crying for help, too. “He tried to hold the boy’s body and cried for help. He created a lot of drama to distract police,” said sources.
10.45 am – Jyoti, the mother of the seven-year-old boy, held the school responsible for not ensuring safety of the students. “The school could not even ensure basic safety for my son, how will then parents send children to school?” she said.
10.40 am – Jyoti, the mother of the victim, said her son did not even know the bus conductor. “My son did not even know the bus conductor as he never traveled in bus, we used to drop him and pick him,” she told news agency ANI.
10.30 am – According to police, the accused allegedly smuggled the knife into the school in his pocket. Simardeep Singh, DCP, said, “He was taking it for sharpening but when the child screamed for help, he used it to slit his neck. The kitchen knife used in the crime was found lying next to his body.”
10.20 am – Yesterday the father, Varun Thakur, demanded that the school principal be named in the FIR. Thakur said, “We hold not only the killer but also those who let him inside the gate with a knife responsible for the killing of my son.”
Read: Seven-year-old killed in Gurgaon school, throat slit with knife, bus staff held
10.10 am – The bus conductor, Ashok Kumar, was relieving himself in the bathroom after the school assembly, when Pradyuman entered. According to the police, Ashok Kumar allegedly tried to sexually assault the boy. But with the boy fighting back, the accused slit his throat with a kitchen knife and walked out after washing his hands. He confessed to the crime after the police arrested him yesterday.
10.00 am – Father of the Class 2 student who was murdered, Varun Chand Thakur, reached the Police Commissioner’s office with a lawyer to demand action against the management of Ryan International School. Thakur is a quality control manager at Orient Craft, a private firm.
9.50 am – People have gathered outside Ryan International School in Bhondsi and are protesting against the killing of the seven-year-old Pradyuman. Police is also present and is trying to control the protesters.
