Punjab and Haryana High Court: School administrators can’t shun responsibility for children’s safety

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, May 29

Just over a month after a fatal accident resulted in the death of six children and severe injuries to several others in Mahendragarh district, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has ruled that the school administrators cannot play the blame game, attributing faults to others and evade their fundamental implicit or explicit duties, obligations, and liabilities under the guise of ignorance or negligence.

Compromised with safety

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The school owners and their ‘sycophants’ employed a driver on a low monthly wage of Rs 9,000, apparently to cut down the costs, probably because no skilled driver would ply the bus for such low wages. The driver, an alcoholic, was employed with no regard to his addiction. Their prime aim was not to put children’s safety first, but to save money on salary. Justice Anoop Chitkara

The assertions came as Justice Anoop Chitkara dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of a director looking after the school’s overall work, while transcending the confines of immediate legal framework to emphasise the critical role of children in society and the duty of educational institutions to ensure their safety.

Elevating the issues related to child safety from a procedural duty to a moral imperative, Justice Chitkara said children were the lifeblood and essence of any family, community, and society. “They represented the culmination of their parents’ blood, sweat, tears, and aspirations. It is impossible to find adjectives that fully capture the profound impact and significance children have in the lives and hearts of their family and communities. Children are our today and our tomorrow.”

He added the fundamental reason for the existence of “the institution of school” was to nurture and develop children. “When the parents put their faith in a school establishment and entrust their child’s safety to it, such a sensitive and immense responsibility needs to be taken solemnly and should be approached with great caution, utmost seriousness, and diligence.”

Justice Chitkara also observed that laxity of “such massive proportion” could not be ignored, adding that the school owners and their “sycophants” employed a driver on a low monthly wage of Rs 9,000, apparently to cut down the costs, probably because no skilled driver would ply the bus for such low wages. The driver, an alcoholic, was employed with no regard to his addiction. Their prime aim was not to put children’s safety first, but to save money on salary.

“It is the duty of us all, especially the legal justice system, to ensure a fair and thorough investigation. It is imperative to highlight, identify, and hold accountable all those who were responsible for bringing about such a catastrophe, not only to serve justice but also to ensure that such a tragedy does not repeat itself due to the mismanagement and negligence of the authorities concerned under our collective watch,” he said.