Kota coaching institute booked for abetting teen's suicide after father alleges harassment

KOTA: A day after a NEET aspirant died here allegedly after consuming poison, the police have booked her coaching centre for abetting suicide after the girl's father claimed the institute was "harassing her", officials said. Priyam Singh, the 16-year-old student from Uttar Pradesh's Mau district, died on Monday after allegedly after consuming pesticide in this coaching hub, police said. Priyam's father Suryaprakash Singh, who reached Kota on Tuesday to claim the body after post-mortem, held the coaching institute responsible for mounting pressure for studies on his daughter and lodged a complaint against it, they added.

ALSO READ| NEET UG 2024 exam date announced, result in second week of June, says NTA

Based on the complaint, a case of abetment to suicide under section 306 of the Indian Penal Code has been lodged against the institute, located in Vigyan Nagar, DSP Dharmveer Singh said. Asked about purported WhatsApp messages which have surfaced suggesting a love affair was the cause of the suspected suicide, the DSP said the police have not seen any such messages, adding that all angles are being investigated.

Speaking to reporters outside the mortuary, Suryaprakash said the teachers at the institute "harassed" his daughter and "mounted pressure saying she was lagging in studies and would fail". The father also alleged that the staff of the coaching institute followed him to his hotel room in Kota and threatened him on the phone not to approach the Kota administration, the police said. Suryaprakash has provided the phone number from which he received the call to the district administration and the police, they added.

ALSO READ| Gujarat NEET UG Counselling 2023: Round 3 seat allotment result out; report by September 21

Priyam was a Class 12 student preparing for NEET-UG at the coaching institute in Vigyan Nagar for one-and-a-half years. She shifted to a flat on Road number 1 in Vigyan Nagar this June, the DSP said. Kota City ASP Bhagwat Singh Hingad said the girl was spotted vomiting outside the coaching institute, from where other students and staff rushed her to a hospital, where she succumbed to death during treatment on Monday evening, No suicide note was recovered from the girl's room and an investigation is underway into the allegation by her parents against the institute and how the girl obtained the pesticide, the ASP added. The body was handed over to the girl's family members on Tuesday noon after a post-mortem, the DSP said.

If you, or anyone you know, needs help, AASRA has a list of resources here: http://www.aasra.info/helpline.html