Doubts have begun to arise over the mysterious death of a ninth class student, Vemula Sai Rupa (15) in her school hostel room in Kethanakonda last Friday. The villagers are demanding an inquiry while the school management says it was a suicide.
“Though the girl died around 10.30 a.m., school staff did not inform the village elders. The management said they had no clue of her death till evening,” said the villagers. Sai Rupa, a native of Kanchikacherla, died in her hostel at Emmanuel School in Ibrahimpatnam. Kethanakonda sarpanch Puli Meeramma said the school authorities did not inform the panchayat about the death. Instead, it declared a holiday for two days. Kethanakonda Village Development Committee president Moguluri Nagamani said the school staff did not allow villagers to see the body. “We came to know about the death only when students came back from school in the afternoon,” she said.
“Around 1.30 p.m. we reached the school but the staff refused to allow us inside and posted security personnel at the gate. We could enter the hostel around 6 p.m. only after the girl’s mother reached the place. There were injuries on her body,” said Ms. Nagamani.
A villager who saw the body in the hostel room said there were no signs in the room that the girl had committed suicide. Nobody saw the body hanging. The girl’s family too expressed doubts about the case . “My sister did not commit suicide. The school management harassed her,” said Sai Rupa’s sister Vijaya Durga, an Intermediate student.
District Child Protection Unit officials visited the hostel on Monday and questioned the staff. Emmanuel School (run by UCCI-CESDA Ministries) president N. Emmanuel Winston said Sai Rupa suffered from epilepsy and committed suicide due to ill health. The Education officials did not respond to calls for clarifications. CI B. Chawan said autopsy report is awaited. Police reportedly took hostel matrons Balamani and Manasa and senior warden Nageswara Rao into custody.
Injuries found on body; police take three into custody
