Protests have been held across the city since the incident came to light.
| Photo Credit: file photo
The Delhi police on Monday interrogated two of the four teachers of St. Columba’s School named in the FIR in connection with the death of its Class 10 student by suicide. The others will be interrogated on Tuesday, said an officer. The 16-year-old student had named three of the four teachers in the note he left behind after taking the extreme step on November 18 following “mental harassment”.
“On Sunday, we questioned two teachers of the school whose names were not mentioned in the FIR or the suicide note,” said a senior police officer.
As part of their investigation into the FIR registered on November 19 under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections pertaining to abetment to suicide and common intention, the police have seized CCTV footage of the school in Ashok Place and questioned five of the deceased’s classmates.
Protests have been held across the city since the incident came to light. On Monday, several parents, including those of the deceased, staged a demonstration outside St. Columba’s school seeking the arrest of the four teachers named in the FIR, whom the school had placed under temporary suspension last week. The boy’s parents met Joint Commissioner of Police (Transport) Milind Mahadeo Dumbere on Monday, who assured them that the probe is progressing in the proper direction.
Create safe spaces: Sood
Meanwhile, Education Minister Ashish Sood urged the school principal to “go beyond procedural compliance and create emotionally safe, empathetic, and responsive ecosystems” for students, as per a statement from the Minister’s office on Monday.
Mr. Sood asked the school to submit details of the internal review it has initiated, and whether it required any support from the government, the statement added. It said all Delhi schools must ensure better emotional and psychological support systems, early identification of student distress, teacher training and sensitisation on mental health issues, peer support and open communication channels, and prioritisation of students’ happiness, confidence, and well-being.
In his letter dated November 21, two days after the 16-year-old student’s death, the Minister wrote: “Let this tragic moment not pass without becoming a turning point for St. Columba’s School and, indeed, for all schools in Delhi. Let us strive to create not just high achievers but happy souls, not just disciplined students but emotionally secure human beings.”
The letter added that the principal must strive to create an “ecosystem that does not merely comply with safety protocols and counselling requirements but actively fosters joy, empathy, trust, and openness”. This ecosystem, stated the letter, must include teachers who are trained to spot “signs of silent suffering”, strong peer support systems, and equal emphasis on emotional literacy as on academic excellence.
Published – November 25, 2025 12:59 am IST
