A shocking case of murder and institutional cover-up has emerged from the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) in Bhubaneswar, where a 14-year-old student was strangled to death by his classmates following a trivial dispute over a bathroom bucket. The police have now confirmed the incident as murder and have charged not only the three minor assailants but also eight senior school officials for their alleged role in attempting to conceal the crime.
The Fatal Night and the "Joker's Gang"
The tragic sequence of events unfolded on the night of December 11. According to police commissioner S Dev Datta Singh, the dispute began inside a toilet block when the victim, a Class IX student from Keonjhar district, refused to hand over a bucket to his classmates. This led to a physical scuffle where the minors, who had branded themselves as the 'joker's gang'—a name found written on a hostel wall—proceeded to beat, throttle, and strangle the boy.
Several other hostel inmates witnessed the crime. The three accused minors were later produced before the Juvenile Justice Board and have been categorised as Children in Conflict with Law (CCL). They are currently held at an observation home.
Systematic Cover-Up by School Authorities
In a disturbing turn, the police investigation revealed a concerted effort by the school management to hide the murder. Instead of immediately informing the police, KISS officials contacted the boy's parents, claiming he was unwell. The student was taken to the KIMS Hospital, where, as per police allegations, no post-mortem was conducted, and the local police were not alerted.
Shockingly, the hospital issued a slip to the father stating the cause of death as a heart attack. "We will investigate the hospital's suspected negligence," stated Commissioner Singh, highlighting the lapse in due procedure.
The eight KISS officials charged with murder and destruction of evidence include additional CEO Pramod Patra and staff members Binay Kumar Gochhi, Prasanna Kumar Malla, Pradeep Das, Rashmiranjan Nayak, Hemanta Kumar Mohapatra, Subhakanta Behera, and Sujata Mishra. Police allege these officials intimidated the minor witnesses to stay silent. All eight have been remanded to judicial custody.
Police Investigation and Legal Proceedings
The truth began to surface after the boy's father lodged a formal police complaint in Keonjhar on December 13, leading to the registration of a zero FIR. The case was subsequently transferred to the Infocity police station in Bhubaneswar. A post-mortem examination was conducted in Keonjhar on the same day, and the report, received by police on Tuesday evening, conclusively confirmed it was a murder, contradicting the initial heart attack narrative.
This case has raised severe questions about safety, accountability, and oversight in residential schools. The police have squarely blamed the school for attempting to cover up the murder from the very beginning. When approached for comments, both KISS and KIMS authorities declined to respond.
