In memory of Nhaveen, a victim of school bullying

SPECIAL REPORT | Stepping into T Nhaveen’s home, one will notice a faint fluorescent light and an altar in the living room.

The portrait of the young boy was placed on the table, framed with white garlands, surrounded by fruits and flowers. The floor was full of trays holding rice, petals and spices.

“Today is actually one year after he left us. For us, the pain is still the same, nothing has changed,” said Nhaveen’s mother Shanti Dorairaj. There was a long silence after Shanti uttered those words.

In June last year, Nhaveen was attacked violently on his way home. He was found and sent to Penang Hospital the next morning, and eventually passed away. At the time, Nhaveen was 18.

With news on the new Pakatan Harapan government and the accusations against former premier Najib Abdul Razak getting all the attention, quietly in a flat at Bukit Gelugor, Penang, Nhaveen’s family held a memorial prayer.

The dimly-lit living room was filled with smoke as a Hindu priest led the family to recite prayers for Nhaveen.

The male elders, who were in their white robes, were sitting on the floor citing mantras, while Nhaveen’s mother, aunts and grandmas were staring at his portrait, gently wiping their tears.

The sofas were moved into the corridor to free up space, but still, the living room couldn’t contain dozens of friends and relatives who came to pray and show their support.

After the crowd left, Shanti and her sister D Sumathi felt comfortable to share Nhaveen’s story.

After graduating from secondary school, Nhaveen was doing a part-time job in a fashion store while waiting to enroll in a music composition course at a college in Kuala Lumpur.

The day he passed away was actually seven days before he was supposed to begin his new life in the big city.

“I remembered that Nhaveen looked so handsome in his uniform, he wore a white shirt, black trousers, and leather shoes. I have never seen him so handsome, you know? When I went to his working place to see him, I took a selfie with him,” said Sumathi, while scrolling on her smartphone to find his photo.

"This photo on the altar is actually his last photo we took of him," her husband A Suryakumar added, pointing to Nhaveen’s portrait.

“He is a soft-hearted boy, but he is not that type of soft,” Shanti said, referring to the fake news describing her son as gay, which still hurts her.

“For me, gay and transgender people are actually much better than those culprits who had done these kinds of things to my son. They don’t harm people like those guys did. They are more loving people than the culprits.”

According to Shanti, Nhaveen and his friend T Previin, were teased and then beaten up by some youths when they were buying burger. This happened after Nhaveen finished his work on June 9 last year.

Previin managed to escape with an injury to his eye and ran to Nhaveen’s house for help. The next morning, Nhaveen was found badly beaten. After several days of rescue, he passed away in the evening of June 15.

“The second day after he was sent to the hospital, the doctors informed us that his anus was bleeding, like some hard object was inserted into it. At that time, I really could not take it. I cried and shouted at everyone.”

She mentioned that there were also some burn marks on Nhaveen’s back.

“They tortured him a lot. Nhaveen was someone who would cry when he suffered a headache. We can’t imagine how he went through that.”

Violence started early

Although the incident occurred outside the campus after his graduation, Shanti (photo, left) recalled that Nhaveen had been bullied since he was in Form 3, and the main culprit was one of the suspects, Ranjiv (not his real name).

“Ranjiv is a very strong boy and my son is not strong. He always blocked my son from entering the class. He would drag his bag and put it somewhere and my son had to follow him to get it back.”

Shanti said that Nhaveen was soft and obedient. Unlike the other young rebellious boys, he was polite to the teachers and elders.

After he failed to stop Ranjiv from disturbing him, he told Shanti about the bullying. Shanti then went to the school to confront Ranjiv, who said: “No, auntie, we were just playing with him.”

“On the same day he told me they were just playing with Nhaveen, they hit him at the flats nearby when he was walking home. I was really angry and wanted to tell their parents but Nhaveen said he would be a target for more abuse.”

Ranjiv also started calling Nhaveen "pondan"(effeminate), added Shanti.

Even then, Nhaveen refused to report the matter to the discipline teacher for fear that he would be harmed.

“They called him ‘pondan’ just because my son liked to tell his mother every single thing, from A to Z. But what’s strong with that? Was it wrong to respect your parents and being obedient?”

At that time, Shanti also suggested that Nhaveen transfer to another school, but he did not want to leave the good teachers and classmates. It would also mean more expenses on transport. So they gave up the plan.

Shanti revealed that Ranjiv left the school they were studying for two years, but she don't know the reason for it. That made Nhaveen happy.

Unexpectedly, the boy returned, and Nhaveen eventually met his fate.

Death sentence awaits perpetrators

Four suspects were charged with murdering Nhaveen under Section 302 of the Penal Code.

Two suspects, who were above the age of 18, may face the mandatory death sentence upon conviction, while the other two may be sent to the Henry Gurney School as they were minors when the incident happened.

The school bullying incident is not just a matter between the bully and the bullied. The "knowing witnesses" in the school often stay out of the game to protect themselves, and directly or indirectly contribute to the bullying environment.

“Most of the students in the school knew that this fellow kept on disturbing my son. I don’t know whether the teachers knew it. In fact, bullying is getting worse in every school. I think stern action must be taken,” said Shanti.

“He was someone who appeared in your life every day, but he suddenly disappeared,” said Nhaveen’s uncle Suryakumar (photo).

He was close to Nhaveen and became his fitness instructor. He felt Nhaveen was too thin and weak.

After the prayers, Suryakumar wore a self-made white T-shirt with the words "Justice For Nhaveen" on it.

“The cause of the campus bullying incident is very complicated. I think we can't just blame the school teachers. Nowadays, the children are exposed to various information in a much more complicated way than before. But I think parents play the most important role.”

Suryakumar said he is now working closely with the Penang Social Welfare Department to share his own experience and contribute to the prevention of campus bullying in the near future.

Source : https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/433983