15-year-old Kerala Dalit girl dies by suicide, family says cops yet to act on complaint
Arathi, a 15-year-old Dalit girl from Kerala, who made earlier allegations of caste based harassment against her school teacher, took her life on July 10. Her family wants to know why she had to die.
The News Minute: SATURDAY, JULY 29, 2023 – 11:15
One day in 2022, while Arathi S was a student of Class 9, she asked her mother Sandhya, what the terms Cheramar and Pulayar mean. Her mother explained to her that they are caste names and Arathi belonged to the Pulaya community, which comes under the Scheduled Caste category. It surprised the 13-year-old girl, says her mother Sandhya, a saleswoman. Until then she only knew they were extremely poor and her mother, a single parent, struggles to make both ends meet.
Arathi, who studied at Victory Girls Higher Secondary School, Nemom, killed herself on July 10, 2023, at her house near Ayanimoodu, in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram district. The tragic incident happened a month before she turned 15. Before she took her life, Sandhya says her daughter made a call to Naruvamoodu police station. She told police that she doesn’t want to go back to the school, as one of the teachers harassed her alleging that she has a boyfriend.
None of her friends, classmates or teachers took part in her funeral.
On July 7, her mother got a call from her teacher saying Arathi had a phone charger in her bag and that she might be carrying a mobile phone. But the teacher hadn’t recovered any phone from her bag. ‘When I came back from the shop at night, I asked her whether she carried a phone. She swore on me saying she did not have a phone. After that I did not ask her anything. Next two days Arathi seemed gloomy but continued to play with her sister Aswathy and other friends.”
On July 10, Arathi did not wake up until her mother and sister Athira left home, by 8.45am. “We did not wake her up, since she was sick, we did not force her,” Aswathy told TNM.
That day Sandhya got a call from Naruvamoodu police in the afternoon, saying Arathi called them. “They said she had some issues at school and wanted to change her school,” she said. Arathi did make a call to Naruvamoodu police station on July 10 using her sister’s phone. After which she got onto the terrace of her house, where there was a tiny room to dry clothes, where she attempted suicide. She was taken to Thiruvananthapuram Medical College hospital, but died on July 12.
Arathi’s grave
It was after Arathi’s death that her sister Aswathy S, who is two years elder to her, recalled some incidents that happened in 2022. “While Arathi was studying in 9th standard, she wore a golden ring to class, and the same teacher asked her which man bought it for her. When she wore a watch, she also teased her saying there is someone for Arathi to buy things. Once the teacher also said that our mother is not capable of buying all these things,” Aswathy told TNM.
Arathi then requested Aswathy not to tell anybody about this as she was scared her mother would question the teachers. “She feared that teachers might reduce her marks if this became an issue. Also the same teacher had scolded her saying her mother has no time for her, also where does she get money to buy these things. When the teacher pointed fingers at our mother she was really in pain,” Aswathy said.
It was around the same time Arathi asked questions around caste at home. “She did not know anything about the caste. She was just 14 and had no clue about what it was,” Sandhya said.
Only after Arathi’s death the family discussed these issues and suspected that she might have been facing caste discrimination at the school.
The school headmistress Asha told TNM that since the case is under investigation, the school cannot comment on the issue. She said the school authorities also wanted to know what happened to Arathi. The school has witnessed several protest demonstrations after the incident and has been provided with security.
Naruvamoodu station house officer Dhanapalan said an enquiry is underway. But the police narrative on Arathi’s phone call to the station is different. “She called the station to say that she did not go to school that day though she wanted to. She wanted the police to speak with her mother in this regard. In our primary investigation at the school and the class where she studied, no suspicions were raised against the teachers,” the officer said, adding that he had recently taken charge and the inquiry is in preliminary stages.
Another police officer, who sought anonymity, said that Arathi called the station to complain that her mother did not allow her to go to school, as her teacher leveled some allegations against her with the mother. “She wanted the police to talk to mother and allow her to go to school,” the officer said. The family filed a police complaint against the teacher on July 18, following which a police officer visited their home but no further action was taken, said Sandhya.
In the tiny room where she used to sleep along with mother and sister, Arathi had scribbled a line on the wall, “Legends never die”. Her mother and sister strongly believe that she had undergone severe discrimination and harassment at her school by a particular teacher and want the incident to be thoroughly investigated.
If you are aware of anyone facing mental health issues or feeling suicidal, please provide help. Here are some helpline numbers of suicide-prevention organisations that can offer emotional support to individuals and families.
