Aritry’s death: Charges pressed against two Viqarunnisa teachers

Detectives today pressed charges against two suspended teachers of Viqarunnisa Noon School and College in a case filed over “provoking suicide”of ninth-grader Ariary Adhikary in December last year.

The teachers are Nazneen Ferdous, acting principal of the school, and Zinat Akhtar, the morning shift in-charge. They got bail from a Dhaka court on January 14.

Another accused in the case Aritry’s class teacher Hasna Hena’s named was dropped from the charge sheet as the charge brought against her was not proved.

DB Inspector Kazi Kamrul Islam and also the investigation officer of the case today submitted the charge sheet to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court of Dhaka showing 23 people as prosecution witnesses.

Aritry was found hanging from the ceiling of her home in the capital's Shantinagar on December 3 last year, hours after she and her parents were allegedly insulted by some teachers of the school.

The next day, her father Dilip Adhikary filed the case with Paltan Police Station accusing three teachers of provoking Aritry’s suicide.

The death and the subsequent agitation, joined by parents, rocked the 66-year-old institute and prompted the education ministry and the school authorities to form two separate probe committees.

Besides, the High Court directed the education secretary to form another five-member committee headed by an additional secretary of the ministry to look into the matter.

Students boycotted classes and demonstrated for three days, but and later withdrew their programmes upon assurance from the government that the persons responsible for the incidents will be brought to justice.

On December 5 last year, detectives arrested Aritry’s class teacher HasnaHena, 51, hours after she was suspended by the school authorities. She later secured bail on December 9.

The same day, Nazneen Ferdous and Zinat Akhtar were also suspended, following an order of the education ministry.

In a letter, the ministry also ordered the authorities concerned to cancel the teachers' Monthly Payment Order (MPO) and take legal action against them.