A day after a stampede at the Government Senior Secondary School in Khajuri Khas left five girls dead, the situation remained tense at the GTB Hospital, where the injured are admitted. Six of the injured are stated to be critical.

Two girls — Ruchi and Usha — are on ventilator support. Of the 36 admitted, 10 have been discharged, doctors said.

On Friday, people assembled again after prayers to question the police about the case. The site of the tragedy, meanwhile, wore a deserted look, with a lone guard manning the school premises. The two schools in the area — Government Girls’/Boys’ Senior Secondary School and Government Sarvodaya Kanya/Bal Vidyalaya — have been closed for four days. “My friends told me school will now reopen on Monday,” Farheen, a Class VIII student said.

At Sriram Colony in the area, angry parents and relatives had taken to the streets even on Thursday night. “Our daughters died, we want to know why,” Muhammad Irfan, a resident, said.

The crowd destroyed a few vehicles, including a DTC bus late Thursday night. Several police personnel were posted in the area to control the situation.

First-term exams were on in both schools; on Thursday, the students were taking their second exam of the term. The school, which normally functions in separate shifts for boys and girls, had scheduled the exams together on Thursday.

According to the FIR, the school management told the police they had asked the boys of Class XI to go to the first floor, as the classrooms on the ground floor were flooded by the rains.

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