NHRC Seeks ATR Over Torture, Death Of Student In Navodaya Vidyalay

BHUBANESWAR: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought an Action Taken Report (ATR) within four weeks from the Centre and Odisha government over torture and death of a girl in a Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in the state.

Acting on a petition filed by rights campaigner Subash Mohapatra, the rights panel sought ATR from the Ministry of Human Resource Development and the chief secretary of the state.

The petitioner said the girl, a student of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Bhadrak district’s Basudevpur area, allegedly faced verbal abuse from her English teacher.

“As she went to school to appear for her exam on March 22 this year, the English teacher allegedly chided her and threatened to give her a ‘B’ grade. She returned home crying but was sent back to school by her parents after being consoled. But the teacher allegedly castigated her again following which she slashed her wrist with a razor kept in her geometry box. She was saved as the victim was rescued just in time and sent to a government hospital,” he added.

In another incident on 15th September last year, a student of the same school had committed suicide allegedly due to harassment by two women teachers.

“Truptimayee (16) of Bhattasahi village committed suicide due to corporal punishment committed on her by two lady teachers. Though her father registered a complaint with police, no legal action has been initiated against them yet. On September 15 last year, Truptimayee allegedly committed suicide in the school’s hostel,” said Mohapatra.

Her father lodged an FIR in which he accused the lady teachers of torturing her.

The petitioner has sought the rights panel to direct the Centre and the state to remove the teacher from service and take all the steps to bring the culprits to justice.