Huzaifa, the 5th-grade student who received an acute neck injury during a school festival, has lost the battle for life after spending days on a vent.
The incident took place at The Smart School’s Model Colony branch on Feb 24 when Huzaifa got a piece of broken glass lodged into his neck, an injury that proved fatal.
The incident happened at a soft drink stall during a school function which, according to a Directorate of Inspection and Registration of Private Institutions Sindh report, was only held for the secondary section.
The child was rushed to Civil Hospital’s trauma center and was under treatment in its intensive care unit (ICU).
What Does the FIR Say?
The father of the deceased child had filed a case at Model Colony police station against the school management under the provisions of negligence.
The father also complained that the child was taken to the hospital very late which led to the worsening of his condition.
The FIR says that Hizaifa was injured during a school function held for the secondary section on the school’s rooftop, where he was visiting.
The permission to set up a soft drink stall at the school festival was given by the school administration, the report added.
Action Against School Management
Since the incident took place, parents have been highly concerned about the safety of their own children.
Questions like why the soft drink stall with glass bottles was allowed, and what a knife (which a student used to force-open the bottle) was doing at the stall, remain to be answered by the school management.
According to the Directorate of Inspection/Registration of Private Institutions’ Additional Director Rafia Javed, the school’s registration was suspended and a fine worth Rs75,000 was imposed for “irresponsibility and negligence”.
The school management was also ordered to pay for Huzaifa’s medical treatment while he was hospitalized, the Directorate of Inspection and Registration of Private Institutions Sindh report adds.
Now that Huzaifa has succumbed to the injury – which clearly points to the school management’s criminal negligence – parents await some strict action to prevent such incidents in the future.
