Teacher killed after refusing to allow cheating

An honest school teacher in Haryana's Sonipat town has paid with his life for refusing to let a pupil cheat in the Grade 12 board examinations, police said. The victim, Rakesh, a Hindi teacher at Ramjas School, was hit by a speeding car on Friday, driven by two youths, Vikram and Hari Om, while he was returning home from school. The two had earlier threatened him with dire consequences if he refused to let their friend cheat, police said. He was rushed by his family members to a hospital and then taken to New Delhi for treatment where he died on Sunday. The victim's family claimed he had been threatened with dire consequences by the two accused unless he let their friend cheat in a Grade 12 examination by the Haryana School Board. When Rakesh refused, the accused allegedly crushed him under their car. "They had threatened him with dire consequences if he refused to let the concerned student cheat in the exams. Rakesh has paid a very heavy price for his stand. The accused should get the maximum penalty," said Mukesh, the victim's younger brother. Police said they have registered a case of murder against the accused. One of the accused, Vikram, was arrested yesterday. A search is being conducted for Hari Om. "We have registered a case and are investigating the matter," station house officer Surinder Kumar said. Rakesh was considered an upstanding teacher in the private school where he taught for nearly five years. "He was a very dedicated and honest teacher. Whatever happened should never have happened," school chairman Ved Pal said.