The managing director and a correspondent of a private residential school in Panyam were arrested on Thursday, after a six-year-old student fell into a sambar vessel and died of burn injuries at the school on Wednesday night.
Police charged managing director Vijay Kumar Reddy and correspondent Naga Malleswar Reddy with culpable homicide and said they would be produced in court soon.
The boy, identified as Purushottam Reddy, a resident of Tippayipalli of Orvakal mandal, was a UKG student at the residential school.
Panyam Circle Inspector Jeevan Ganganath Babu told The Hindu that the incident occurred on Wednesday afternoon, during lunch break. “Purushottam was rushed to the Government General Hospital (GGH) in Kurnool, where he unfortunately died while undergoing treatment,” Mr. Ganganath Babu said.
“Vijay Kumar Reddy and Naga Malleswara Reddy were arrested after Purushottam’s parents filed a police complaint. A case of culpable homicide has been registered against the duo and we will produce them in court soon,” the CI said.
Negligence alleged
The CI described the sequence of events that led to the tragedy. “As soon as the bell rang for lunch, the children rushed to the dining hall where all the hot vessels were kept on the ground. Purushottam lost his balance and slipped and fell into the vessel,” the CI said.
“There were no adults nearby when he fell into the vessel. It was only after hearing the other children’s screams that some staff rushed in and took the boy out. He was shifted to a local hospital first and was then taken to GGH where he breathed his last,” the CI said.
Protests erupted outside the school on Thursday. Several student organisations demanded action against the school management, stating that its negligence led to Purushottam’s death.
