The suicide of a 16-year-old student from a lower caste named Akilan was reported in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. His family claims that he was subjected to harassment at school due to questions about beef consumption, as well as caste-based discrimination.
The Tamil Nadu government reacted to the incident by sending a notification to the Director General of Police, while the police began investigating the case.
The incident occurred in the Pilamedu area of Coimbatore. According to available information, on October 21, Akilan's mother, Kaushalya, returned from work and found her son hanging from the ceiling in his bedroom. The information was then passed to the police.
After the student's death, the family filed a complaint regarding the alleged harassment and discrimination he faced at school. In her complaint, Kaushalya accused one of the school teachers of asking her son whether he ate beef.
The family also states that the issue was previously brought to the attention of the school principal, but no action was taken. According to the family, after the incidents at school, the behavior of classmates towards Akilan changed.
It was reported that students in the class were asked to raise their hands and state whether they belonged to the 'Scheduled Caste' community. It is presumed that after this, Akilan began to be harassed by his classmates. Some students stopped talking to him and constantly asked him if he consumed beef. The family believes that such behavior caused the student severe psychological distress, although confirmation of these allegations is only possible after the investigation is complete.
The Pilamedu police registered a case against four individuals under three sections, which also includes two students from the government school. The police are examining all allegations and events related to the case. Details of the three registered sections have not been provided at this time.
Following the student's death, the school principal, Arunkumar, and teacher Vijayakumar were suspended from work. The Tamil Nadu government has also taken note of the situation and sent a notification to the Director General of Police. The investigation will now determine what exactly happened to the student at school and why, despite the complaints, the alleged actions were not taken. A conclusion of the investigation into this matter is expected.