Ground Report 'The Narcissist Principal': DAV School watchman bares it all; says rape incident brought infamy

Hyderabad: BSD DAV Public School in Banjara Hills continues to remain shut after the gruesome rape of a four-year-old by the principal's driver. One of the regular auto drivers of the school said that some more repair work was going on and it would take another two days for the school to reopen.

However, the school watchman Shivaji said that its reopening will depend on the outcome of the meeting between management and the District Educational Officer (DEO).

School remained closed on Wednesday

Shivaji has been working as the watchman of the DAV Public School for the last 22 years. "I started from a smaller branch of the same school at Road No.4 Banjara Hills in 1996. In 2001, the school was shifted to its present location at Road No.14 in Banjara Hills. This is the first incident in the school in my entire service," said Shivaji.

Though Shivaji is not sure what happened to the girl, he feels bad for the name of the school being tarnished. "Madam (Principal) ko nikalo, driver ko nikalo, par kyun school ka naam badnam karna? Yeh koi socha nahi. Mujhe bahut dard ho reha hein (Sack the Principal, driver, but why tarnish the name of the school?) Nobody thought about it. This is what pains me," he said.

DAV Public School at Banjara Hills has 700 students on its roll from LKG to class 7. After the 7th standard, these students join the other branches of DAV in Hyderabad.

The Narcissist Principal

Shivaji said that Madhavi, who is currently in jail, is only In charge principal. She joined the DAV school in 2021.

"Usually to become Principal, the teachers have to go to Delhi and write their exam. But here, Madhavi, who was a Social Studies teacher was made in-charge Principal," he explained.

Shivaji said that the Principal is a narcissist and always used to scare everybody telling them about her powers. "One should have a knack to work aS a team. Mein mein mein bolke kare tho, kaise school acchi tharah chalayenge?" asked Shivaji, recalling how different she was from the previous two Principals.

He also alleged that the Principal used to leave the school after morning assembly at around 10 am and return at around 2 pm. "Nobody dared to ask her where she was going," he said.

The medical room (left) of the school is where the alleged crime took place

Shivaji added the school is short of 5 teachers, and 1 ayah (a woman for looking after small children). As a result, the Principal's driver was sent to classes to manage the children.

"In absence of teachers, the driver used to be sent to classrooms to handle the class. He also handled admission, and fees collection works instead of a clerk," said Shivaji.

The driver also has been working in the school for the last 12 years.

Shivaji alleged that the Principal used to collect a lot of money from the parents in the name of various programs and take a huge cut for herself. "Once, Rs.3000 was collected from 50-60 children for a picnic. So they have to buy something for the children to eat and drink, right? But the students were given Rs.10 Frooti and Rs.5 Goodday biscuits. They gobbled up the rest of the money," he said.

Left: Block where LKG, UKG, Ist Std, 2nd Standard classrooms are located

Right: LKG classroom

Security issues

On October 19, the parents of the school gathered in front of the Banjara Hills Police Station. Some of the parents raised concerns that there were no proper security measures in the school.

Archana Reddy, one of the parents had told NewsMeter, "There is no proper security mechanism. At noon, when the school shuts and the children come out of their classrooms, the auto drivers are simply let in. They come near the classrooms, pick the children and go. Nobody checks who is being taken away by whom."

Shivaji admitted that he is the only watchman for the entire 24 hours. But he said that he takes great care to ensure that the children go back homes with the right person. "The regular auto drivers were let inside the school. I used to raise alarm if I found something suspicious. There were instances when auto drivers came in a drunken state to pick up the children. I denied sending the children with them," said Shivaji.

Playground

Meeting with DEO

On October 26, the DAV school management team from Delhi met the District Educational Officer (DEO) along with some parent representatives to discuss how to accommodate the students in the nearby schools.

However, according to sources, a majority of the parents supported continuing education in the same school with different management and better security facilities. The various proposals from the parents were discussed at the meeting. The final decision by the government will be made public by 27 or 28 October, according to sources.

As the discussions continue, in his small, single-room shed beside the DAV Public School in Banjara Hills, Shivaji wonders if he would get to see his children again.