Over 360 MP school students lock themselves in hostel, demand principal’s removal

Nearly 360 students of Classes 9 to 12 at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Guna’s Bajranggarh locked themselves inside their hostel for over three hours on Sunday evening, demanding the removal of the principal after he was accused of beating a Class 10 student who had complained about substandard food, officials said.

“In protest, 360 students locked them inside the hostel room and threatened of fast unto death. The standoff lasted for over three hours, with students refusing to open the gates despite repeated appeals from teachers,” an official, requesting anonymity, said.

The principal, HK Meena, was accused of brutally beating a Class 10 student in Bajranggarh village, seven kilometres from Guna. The matter came to light on Wednesday after a team from the ministry of education reached the school to probe the matter.

Principal HK Meena refuted the allegations and said, “Nothing happened. It was an internal matter,” he added.

As the situation escalated, the school management informed district collector Kishore Kumar Kanyal, who is also the institution’s ex-officio chairman. By evening, naib tehsildar Narendra Singh Yadav and Bajranggarh police station in-charge Kripal Singh Parihar arrived with police forces.

The students came out of their room after the district administration team reached the school. “After hours of persuasion and assurances, the hostel gates were finally opened around 4am on Monday and the students agreed to eat,” said Parihar.

A joint investigation team and regional officials from the Navodaya institution collected food samples and recorded statements from the victim and other students.

However, collector Kanyal acknowledged that students were upset with the principal and locked themselves in protest. “Officials were sent to bring the situation under control. A team from the Navodaya institution also visited, and they will take action. We have also conducted an inquiry and will submit the report to them,” he said.