Made to clean toilets at school, teenager kills herself

NDTV / Agencies

Saharanpur:  A teenager in Uttar Pradesh has killed herself after her school principal ordered her to clean the toilets at her school. Laxmi’s friends allegedly mocked her and so nine days later, she committed suicide by hanging herself inside her house.

 

Laxmi was made to clean toilets everyday. Laxmi’s younger brother, who studies at the same school, says she was also asked to remove dog excrement from the school campus.

 

 

The principal, Rajesh Pawar, had allegedly asked Laxmi’s mother, Reena, a daily wage labourer, to clean the school toilets and offered her a monthly salary of Rs 1000.  When she refused, he threatened to charge Reena for Laxmi’s education.  Local officials had waived the school fees because of the family’s low income.

 

 

Laxmi’s mother says her daughter had volunteered to clean the bathrooms because she knew of the principal was pressuring her mother to take the job.