Parents of Jaipur girl who jumped from school building release new CCTV footage

Jaipur, Jul 9 (PTI) Parents of a nine-year-old girl, who allegedly committed suicide at Jaipur's Neerja Modi School last year, have released new CCTV footage of the classroom, alleging that her classmates repeatedly bullied their daughter. As her attempts to seek help did not receive the response the family expected from the teacher, they reiterated their demand for action against all those responsible under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act. The footage, released by Amayra's family, has been cited by them as evidence supporting their long-standing claim that sustained bullying and the school's alleged failure to intervene contributed to the child's death. Amaira, a Class 4 student, had allegedly jumped from the fourth floor of the school building on November 1 last year. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared her dead on arrival. Nearly eight months after the incident, Rajasthan Police recently filed a chargesheet before a court in the case. According to the family, the newly released CCTV footage captures the sequence of events inside the classroom shortly before the incident. They claimed the video shows Amayra entering the classroom normally, greeting a classmate and participating in a dance activity before allegedly being subjected to repeated bullying by other students. The family alleged that despite visible signs of distress, the child did not receive adequate intervention or protection from teachers. Amaira's father, Vijay Meena and mother Shivani alleged that their daughter had repeatedly sought help, but the school failed to respond appropriately. She called for the inclusion of abetment-related charges wherever legally warranted and demanded an impartial investigation into the circumstances leading to her daughter's death. The parents alleged that police did not investigate the case properly under the influence of the school management and failed to establish what had happened in the class. Sanyukt Abhibhavak Sangh state president Arvind Agrawal said that the case highlighted serious concerns over accountability in schools and called for strict enforcement of child safety norms, preservation of evidence and action against those found negligent. The organisation's state spokesperson, Abhishek Jain, said that the case has exposed shortcomings in child protection mechanisms in private schools. He said that anti-bullying policies, qualified counsellors, comprehensive CCTV surveillance and effective grievance redressal systems should be in place in schools to prevent such incidents. PTI SDA SHS