GEORGE TOWN: The form teacher of M. Vasanthapiriya told the coroner’s court that she had never accused the girl of theft.
14-year-old Vasanthapiriya committed suicide earlier this year, allegedly after being accused of stealing her teacher's iPhone.
R. Raymala, 48, also told the court that she did not force Vasanthapiriya to admit to taking the phone, let alone scold or beat her at any time, at the time of the incident on Jan 24 this year.
Raymala said this was despite being shown closed circuit television (CCTV) camera recording taken from the school’s office, which clearly showed that Vasanthapiriya was the only student who had walked into and out of the teacher’s room when the theft allegedly happened.
“I even told Vasanthapiriya not to be too stressed out about the incident and that we would discuss about it later. I even told her father, R. Muniandy, not to scold or beat his daughter when my husband and I sent her home on that fateful day as we were still investigating the matter.
“As such, my husband and I felt bad when we received a call from Muniandy later that night, informing us that Vasanthapiriya was found hanging in her room and had accused us of being the cause of it,” she said.
It was reported that the Form Two student of SMK Methodist Nibong Tebal had died in the Seberang Jaya Hospital following an attempt to hang herself, after she was accused of stealing her teacher’s iPhone in January.
She had vehemently denied the accusation and penned a note proclaiming her innocence.
She hanged herself in her home and was found by her father, who rushed the unconscious girl to the Seberang Jaya Hospital. She died on Feb 1.
Vasanthapiriya’s death sparked a huge outcry, with her family, relatives and the public demanding that justice be served.
Earlier, Raymala also told the court that when she sent Vasanthapiriya home after school on the evening of the incident, the latter had whispered to the former not to relate the incident to Muniandy.
“I told her that was not possible. I then related the phone theft incident to her father but did not accuse her of taking the phone.
“He then turned to her and asked if she took the phone, to which she replied she did with another friend, known only as Yogamalar, and that the phone was with Yogamalar. He then scolded his daughter and became more agitated when Yogamalar’s name was mentioned, telling his daughter that she should not have befriended the girl in the first place.
“We (Raymalar, her husband, Muniandy and Vasanthapiriya) then planned to go to Yogamalar’s house together the same night to retrieve my phone.
“Before I left, I asked him not to scold or beat Vasanthapiriya, and he said that he does not lay his fingers on his girl. He also told me that if his wife found out about it, then she would hit the girl,” she added.
Raymala said they again met Muniandy at about 8.30pm that night and took him along to Yogamalar’s house.
“Before I could said anything, he told me his wife had whacked Vasanthapiriya and that the girl could not come along as she was just taking her bath.
“We then went to Yogamalar’s house, who was certainly surprised with our visit, and denied taking the phone,” she said, adding that she got fed up and left.
Raymala said as they were sending Muniandy home, he suddenly apologised and said he knew how important the phone was.
“He also told me that he would return the phone to me between 10pm and 10.30pm the same night. He said that he would give me a call to come collect the phone.
“I was shocked when he said it but left it as it was and sent him home,” he noted.
Raymala said before she could reach her home, Muniandy called her husband’s phone and started scolding them, saying that they were the cause for her daughter hanging herself.
“He even challenged us to lodge a police report about the missing phone, saying that he too would do so."
Get the latest World Cup 2018 scores, highlights and updates from our dedicated World Cup page