In a major development in the murder case of Class 2 student of Ryan International School, the driver of the bus, of which the accused Ashok Kumar was the conductor, has backed the latter, claiming that he is being wrongly accused and cannot commit such a crime.
Pradhyuman, a Class 2 student, was found lying in pool of blood with his throat slit inside a washroom on the school premises on Friday. The very same day, police had arrested Ashok Kumar, a conductor of one of the school's buses, who later allegedly confessed to the crime under interrogation.
Bus driver Saurabh Raghav told India TV on Monday that he has been working with Ashok for the past several months, and that he is not of the character to have committed such a crime. Raghav further said that Ashok is being pressurised to confess to the crime.
“I think he (Ashok) is being wrongly accused. He has been working with me for the last 4-5 months and he is not of such character. I know him very well,” says bus driver Raghav.
He further claimed that no knife is being ever kept in the bus. “No knife is ever kept in the bus. On that day also, I myself cleaned the bus. We keep a cutter in the tool box, not any knife,” said Raghav.
The bus driver also said that Ashok is being wrongly framed in the case, to “cover up the someone very influential”.
This is contrary to the alleged confession of Ashok to the police in which he admitted that he took the knife from the tool box.
Ashok’s father also said that his son is being wrongly framed, and that he can never commit such a crime.
“When I went to meet him, he saw me and started crying and didn’t say anything. I know my son, he cannot do such a thing. He is being wrongly framed in the case,” said Ashok’s father.
Earlier today, taking action on the report of the three-member indicating lapses in security at the school, two top officials of the Ryan International were arrested while the acting principal detained for questioning in connection with the case.
Fourteen police teams constituted to probe the case, which has sparked huge public outrage, are questioning the school staff while an SIT team is headed to Mumbai to interrogate school CEO Ryan Pinto and director Albert Pinto.
