A Class 4 student, who died by suicide at a prestigious school in Jaipur, had approached her class teacher five times and sought her support for 45 minutes over alleged bullying but was not offered any help.
Instead of supporting or helping the nine-year-old girl, the teacher shouted at her multiple times and said things that 'shocked the entire class'. The minor, who was being harassed for 18 months, felt cornered. She left her classroom on the ground floor and ultimately jumped from the fourth floor of the school building and died on the spot.
These are among the conclusions arrived at by a two-member team of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) that is probing the suicide of the girl - Amaira Kumar Meena - on November 1 at Neerja Modi School. Her parents alleged she was bullied, teased and verbally abused with "sexual connotations" and that repeated complaints were unaddressed by the school authorities.
What happened on day of suicide?
In its report, the CBSE said Amaira was bullied for 18 months and was told "bad words" but class teacher Puneeta Sharma repeatedly dismissed her and her parents' complaints on the matter.
Highlighting the circumstances leading to the child's suicide, the report said Amaira was spotted "engaging in positive conversations, dancing and eating chocolate and golgappa, appearing happy and laughing before 11 am", hours before her death.
Trouble seemed to break out after 11 am when she looked disturbed over the contents on a digital slate, CCTV footage showed. A group of boys "wrote/made something". Amaira's reaction showed her to be "puzzled and surprised", displaying a sense of embarrassment. She was also spotted asking her classmates to stop or erase what was written on the slate.
Amaira also wrote something on the slate and then urged the removal of the content. "The teacher's intervention was very much needed," the CBSE observed.
The class teacher's lack of support was evident when Amaira approached her five times and sought her support for 45 minutes but was not offered any help.
"Instead of supporting her, Puneeta ma'am dismissed the problem. She was seen shouting multiple times and said things that 'shocked the entire class'. Amaira felt concerned and harassed by few classmates and no support or intervention by teachers," the report said, adding that she skipped her lunch that day.
The committee also said "it seems something unusual happened in class and she is looking extremely disturbed". "Few hot discussions, among students, are also observed and it may be related to use of bad words and some derogatory comments as per parents observation and video footage", it said.
Evidence tampering
The report also noted that the area where Amaira fell and died was washed by school authorities, subsequently reducing chances of a forensic analysis.
"Unnecessarily spot of fall was washed that was to be kept intact for forensic analysis," it said.
Past instances of bullying
The CBSE report cited several instances wherein Amaira was bullied by her classmates over a span of 18 months.
It said that in September, Amaira's father had approached her class teacher after she was bullied by a boy (among those who had written some disturbing content on the slate). The teacher, however, said the student "needs to adjust with other kids".
Days later in October, the same boy allegedly misquoted Amaira's "hello" as saying "I love you" in public. The class teacher and coordinator did not intervene but the boy's mother made him apologise after Amaira's mother raised the matter with her, the report said.
It also said that in May last year, Amaira's mother approached the school when a child showed the girl the middle finger. "The message did not get a response from the teacher," the report said.
The girl was also reportedly hit by another boy in July last year but the teacher did not take any action. Days later, the report said, Amaira returned home, crying. "I don't want to go to school. Everybody troubles me. Please get me out of here. Get me admitted to another school," she said, according to an audio clip submitted by her mother to the probe team.
The report said that Amaira's parents tried to change her school but she did not get admission anywhere. "The parents state the conversations with bullies affected Amaira badly, shaking her confidence and trust in the system," it said.
School authorities' refusal to act
Amaira's class teacher admitted that she had approached her over a classmate using "bad words", the report said. "The fellow classmate refused using such words. However, some other children had also made complaints.... It appears that the school failed to maintain healthy atmosphere and there was no specific and required measures to tackle such incidents of bullying...," it said.
"As per the statements of the parents given to the committee, it is clear that the school did not take any preventive and proactive action on the repeated complaint of bullying and teasing by the classmates," it added. Sharma and the school management were very well aware about the harassment and the trauma being faced by the girl but all complaints went unheard.
The report attributed Amaira's "untimely death" to the "teacher's non-response, lack of hearing and absence of empathy/sensitivity to problems. If she would have intervened at first place the problem could not have reach to this magnitude," it said.
According to Amaira's teachers, classmates and parents, she was a "bright, friendly, cheerful student and an All-Rounder winner" at Neerja Modi School.
Safety lapses on campus
The CBSE report said school authorities failed to keep a tab on the students' movement, keeping in mind Amaira managed to reach the fourth floor of the building from her classroom on the ground floor.
There was no dedicated staff member to monitor the CCTV surveillance footage for unusual student movements. The floor attendants on every floor were also not present for duty at the time of the incident, it said.
Students were found not wearing their id cards and subsequently, it took some time to establish Amaira's identity to inform her parents, it added.
Besides, the campus lacked safety steel nets on higher floors to prevent accidents. Such violations led to the loss of an "innocent child" who faced "unbearable trauma and mental harassment".
Student's brilliant academic record
The committee noted Amaira's teachers, classmates and parents' statements that she was a "bright, friendly, cheerful student and an All-Rounder winner" at Neerja Modi School.
School's response sought
The CBSE has sought an explanation from the school, within 30 days, on why it should not be issued penalties in view of the various violations, including under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
