5-yr-old student hospitalised after car knocks him down inside school premises

Five-year-old Brigu Malik would have never thought that playing at the school ground would land him in the hospital. The boy, a student of Std I at Rajhans Vidyalaya in Andheri, was hit by a car on the school premises on Wednesday.

Nightmare: The spot on the ground of x where Brigu was knocked down by the car. (Inset) Five-year-old Brigu Malik is recuperating at Nanavati Hospital. Pic/Nimesh Dave

The incident occurred during the snacks break around 11 am, when Malik was playing along with four of his friends. Because he had fallen down while playing, the boy sat down at a spot. No sooner had he settled down, than a car hit the boy. The car, allegedly being driven by a member of the school management, was backing up.

The injured child was rushed to Nanavati Hospital by two teachers, accompanied by his father Debashish Malik. He was operated upon immediately, as he was bleeding severely from his right thigh. He is still in the hospital.

"The child was bleeding heavily and needed immediate care. The staff management member fled from the spot and hasn't shown up till now. Brigu has been advised two months bed rest," said a parent requesting anonymity.

After a two-and-a-half hour operation, doctors shifted the boy to the ICU, and subsequently, to the general paediatric ward late in the night. Nathanael Sahoo, Malik's friend who was part of the group, said, "As soon as I saw Brigu in pain, I rushed to the attendant to inform him about the incident. His dad was then told, and they took him to the hospital because he was bleeding a lot."

"Had the car been a little closer, the child would have lost his life. I am upset with the management that they haven't even apologised yet. We heard that an FIR was filed against the staff member, but it wasn't true. Moreover, they behaved as if nothing had happened. I could have lost my child, as he too was part of the group," said Narendra Sahoo, Nathanael's father.

Confirming the incident, Deepshikha Srivastava, principal, Rajhans Vidyalaya, said, "The driver was not a teacher. Since, I have been out of town for the last two days, I don't have any details about the incident. You can contact someone from the school."

A teacher of the school, on condition of anonymity, said, "He is a member of the management staff. He does not teach students."