“I agree that carrying the mobile inside the exam hall was wrong, but my son didn’t deserve the harassment that pushed him to take this extreme step,” said the mother of a 19-year-old student of Bengaluru’s PES University. Aditya Prabhu, a BTech student, died by suicide on the campus on July 17. The bereaved mother has come forward with distressing details of alleged mistreatment and harassment that her son endured prior to his death.
Aditya died by suicide after he was reportedly detained and verbally harassed by the college authorities for carrying a mobile phone to the examination hall on July 17. According to his mother, Aditya realised that he had inadvertently carried his phone into the exam hall and immediately placed it in aeroplane mode. However, the invigilator reportedly saw the phone at 11.26 am, merely four minutes before the exam was to end. He completed the exam and was later detained.
The grieving mother further revealed that after being detained, her son was subjected to severe mental harassment by college authorities. “I got a call from Aditya at 11.45 am ... also told that they are harassing him, they told him it’s better to die than do such things and asked me to come to college,” she said.
The situation escalated when she arrived at the college. After waiting for nearly an hour, she was called into the office where the college officials said Aditya had been asked to wait. Only after finding that he wasn’t there, they started looking for him. When the officials rushed out after making a few calls she realised something was wrong and followed them out.
“I could see an ambulance and police already there. That is when I started shouting what has happened to my son. On shouting a lot, I was informed that he isn’t alive,” she said. To her shock, she was asked to allegedly identify her son’s body and also pressured to sign a statement before taking Aditya to the hospital for any possible resuscitation.
Recounting the deeply distressing aftermath of her son’s death, Aditya’s mother alleged that the college authorities were probably trying to absolve themselves of any responsibility in the matter to protect their reputation and took advantage of her delicate mental state as she was alone.
Demanding justice for her son, Aditya’s mother has requested the college to acknowledge its mistake and revise its Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) to ensure the safety and well-being of students who are in a similar situation as Aditya. She maintained that while carrying a phone into the exam hall even by oversight was a mistake, her son did not deserve the alleged harassment that might have contributed to his death. “My poor boy just panicked that his reputation is destroyed and took this extreme step. I agree carrying the mobile inside the examination hall, even when done unintentionally was wrong. But he didn’t deserve the harassment that pushed him to take this extreme step. He didn’t deserve to be left alone either. After his death, he deserved the respect that his body be identified instead of hushing it up and just moving it as an unidentified body to a morgue,” she said.
Girinagar police have filed a case against the invigilator, PES college management, and staff members invoking Section 306 (Abetment of suicide) of the Indian Penal Code, based on Aditya’s father Girish’s statement.
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.
Tamil Nadu
State health department's suicide helpline: 104
Sneha Suicide Prevention Centre - 044-24640050 (listed as the sole suicide prevention helpline in Tamil Nadu)
Andhra Pradesh
Life Suicide Prevention: 78930 78930
Roshni: 9166202000, 9127848584
Karnataka
Sahai (24-hour): 080 65000111, 080 65000222
Kerala
Maithri: 0484 2540530
Chaithram: 0484 2361161
Both are 24-hour helpline numbers.
Telangana
State government's suicide prevention (tollfree): 104
Roshni: 040 66202000, 6620200
SEVA: 09441778290, 040 27504682 (between 9 am and 7 pm)
Aasara offers support to individuals and families during an emotional crisis, for those dealing with mental health issues and suicidal ideation, and to those undergoing trauma after the suicide of a loved one.
24x7 Helpline: 9820466726
Click here for working helplines across India.