Two top Ryan International School Group officials arrested following the murder of an eight-year-old student were remanded to police custody for two days on Monday for further questioning, according to media reports.
The parents want the school in Gurgaon to be shut down until a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry is ordered and stricter legal provisions are imposed on the management.
Ashok Kumar, a 42-year-old bus conductor, was arrested after publicly confessing to slitting the throat of the student who he allegedly tried to sexually abuse in a toilet at the school, according to the Hindustan Times.
Francis Thomas, regional head of the Ryan group of institutions, and HR head Jeyus Thomas were arrested on Sunday night and booked under section 75 of the Juvenile Justice Act. Section 75 deals with cruelty and crime against children in someone’s custody and is punishable by 5-10 years’ imprisonment.
The police brought them to the Sohna court on Monday and asked for a three-day remand order, but the court granted only two days.
Prosecution counsels demanded the addition of section 201 of the Indian Penal Code (causing the disappearance of evidence of an offence). The police told the court that school officials tampered with evidence at the crime scene.
Francis, who is responsible for administration and civil work at the school, was also booked in connection with the drowning of a boy in a water tank at Ryan international school in South Delhi’s Vasant Kunj area on January 30 last year.