UP school stabbing case: Culprit identified; 2 directors arrested for delaying investigation

Shahira Naim

Tribune News Service

Lucknow, January 18                                                 

Following angry protests by parents of students of Brightland School the police have arrested two directors for being responsible for delaying the investigation by keeping the incident under wraps for a full 24 hours.

The incident that occurred on Tuesday morning came to light only on Wednesday when it was leaked on the social media alerting the police.

Principal Rachit Manas had not reported the matter to police and had even reportedly asked the parents not to do so.

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The district administration became active after Chief Minister Yogi Aditynath took cognizance of the incident and visited the Trauma Centre of the King George Medical University hospital on Thursday morning to enquire about the health of seven-year-old Hrithik whose condition is still critical though he is out of danger.

In a scary replay of Gurugram’s Ryan School murder, the seven-year-old student had been beaten up, stabbed and locked up in the school bathroom allegedly by a Class 7 student who wanted the school closed for a day.

When the boy regained consciousness at the Trauma Centre on Tuesday evening he told his parents and the police that a ‘didi’ with cropped hair had taken him to the bathroom where he was first thrashed, then brutally stabbed with a sharp knife and even strangulated with a dupatta.

Late on Wednesday night, the 11-year old alleged culprit was identified by Hrithik from his hospital bed after the police showed him around 45 photographs of senior students with short hair.

Till now it appears that the only motive of the Class 7 student for critically injuring Hrithik was to get the school to announce closure.

Hrithik reportedly told the police that the accused while inflicting injuries on him kept repeating that he had to die for a holiday.

The accused is being interrogated by a woman police officer in plain clothes. A strand of the culprit’s hair and a kitchen knife has been found on the second-floor bathroom where a profusely bleeding Hritihik was found on Tuesday morning.  

She appears to be a troublemaker and had slit her wrists earlier when caught taking examination copies home.