Bangalore:
The parents of a 17-year-old city boy, who died in Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh, under mysterious circumstances on December 19, held a protest on Monday by keeping their son's body in front of Karunya Trust in RBI Colony near Hebbal.
The deceased, identified as Chandru, was a first year PUC student of Karunya Trust in Chittoor district in Andhra Pradesh. He was reportedly found hanging in his hostel room. The trust runs residential schools in three southern states. "We suspect the trust did something to make it look like a suicide," said Satish, a friend of Chandru's family.
Arokyadas, the boy's father is a painter and mother Valli is a casual labourer. They enrolled Chandru in the trust's residential school in Chittoor one-and-half years ago. The last time they met Chandru was eight months ago.
"He was sitting in a car and they just opened the windows," Satish said, adding that other parents had similar experience. "If the parents wanted to meet the boys, they conduct a video-conferencing," he said. Satish also accused the trust of treating the hostel making the inmates work in the fields to meet the expenses for studies and stay in the hostel.
Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike councillor from Hebbal, Anand spoke to the trustees who said the boys were taken to Chittoor from Bangalore for Christmas. Anand was told by the Chittoor police that Chandru committed suicide due to chronic stomach. The police in Andhra Pradesh have filed a case of unnatural death.
A team of Hebbal police went to Chittoor on Tuesday and arrested Pradeep, the manager of the trust's hostel. "The remaining children were asked to go back to their parents and we have closed the operations of the trust in Chittoor," said inspector M Prabhu Shankar.
The trustees have been identified as Suresh in Bangalore and Panneerselvan in Chittoor. Both are absconding, the police said. DNA could not reach the trustees as their mobile phones were switched off.
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