At Viqarunnisa Noon School and College, both the parents of the victim and the school authorities blamed each other, while the school reiterated that they did nothing which could push the girl to hang herself.
Three guardians of other girls, who were present during separate parts of the incident, as well as the accused teachers and the bereaved guardians of the victim spoke to the Dhaka Tribune about the matter Tuesday night.
According to sources, the victim was attending her final exam in sociology on Sunday. As the exam came to a close, two of her classmates noticed a mobile phone on her, something which is strictly prohibited in exam halls.
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Two teachers who were assigned as invigilators for the examination hall charged the girl, seized her exam paper and phone, and asked her to visit the school authorites with her parents the next day.
Morning shift in-charge of Viqarunnisa Zinnat Ara, who has been served a show-cause notice and suspended from her duties, told the Dhaka Tribune that the student’s parents came to her the next morning, and asked her to allow their child to sit for her subsequent exams.
“I did not humiliate them. One of my relatives died that day and I was still grieving,” she claimed.
She then directed the guardians to the chamber of Nazneen Ferdous, principal of Viqarunnisa.
What witnesses said
Three guardians, two of whom are members of the school’s school governing body, were present during the ordeal.
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Requesting to remain anonymous, they told Dhaka Tribune the father of the student was pleading his daughter’s innocence, saying his wife was suffering from various illnesses and would not be able to bear any bad news.
Unflinchingly, the principal said the student was caught in the act of taking pictures of the answers with her phone by her classmates.
Another of the witnesses supported the statement, adding that the whole conversation lasted nearly 40 minutes.
The principal’s account
When contacted, Viqarunnisa Principal Nazneen Ferdous said she did not insult the father of the student in any way.
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She claimed nothing that was said to him would constitute humiliation.
“I want to state unequivocally that I did not humiliate him. I just described the disciplinary procedure regarding the bringing of mobile phones to the school,” she said.
“He listened to me quietly and asked for permission so the girl could sit for the remaining exams. I told him that the day’s examination was over, and we would think about the other exams,” the principal added.
She further said: “The father of the child went on to meet the chairman of the government body. He did not bring any allegations against me during his meeting with him.”
The parents’ perspective
The deceased student’s father claimed the morning shift-in-charge humiliated them when they went to her.
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“Zinnat told us that my daughter will be expelled. When we went to the principal, she also behaved rudely. My daughter grabbed her leg and begged for mercy, but she did not pay any heed,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.
He added that, at one point, his daughter rushed out of the room. After reaching home, they found her lifeless body hanging from a ceiling fan.
