A 16-year-old Class 11 student of a government-aided school in Coimbatore's Peelamedu died at his home on Wednesday. His family has alleged that he was harassed by classmates and a teacher over his caste and food habits. Awaaz Punjab is not naming the student, who was a minor. Police said the body was sent for a post-mortem examination.

Source: The Hindu

The Peelamedu police on Wednesday night booked four persons — two students, teacher Vijayakumar and school principal Arunkumar — under Sections 115(2) and 108 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 3(2)(v) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Vijayakumar was arrested on Thursday. The two students booked in the case are also minors and are not being named. An arrest and a police case are not findings of guilt.

What the family alleges

In her complaint, the student's mother alleged that about two months ago the teacher asked students from Scheduled Caste communities in the class to identify themselves for a stipend list, and also asked how many students ate beef; her son and four others stood up. She alleged that since then, two classmates had been harassing and assaulting her son over his caste.

The mother further alleged that her son had reported the harassment to the teacher and later to the principal, but no action was taken, and that she dropped her own plan to question the school because her son feared being singled out further. These are allegations recorded in a police complaint; the school and the accused have not publicly responded, and the investigation is under way. The district education officer visited the school on Thursday.