Gurgaon: A bag check at govt senior secondary school in Faridabad’s Sector 3 on Thursday led to the recovery of a knife, two mobile phones and an air gun in the bag of a Class 11 arts student — prompting police intervention, even as school authorities later said the items were linked to a birthday celebration rather than any dispute.The inspection was conducted as a precautionary measure following the Aug 3 murder of a schoolteacher in Sikrona and after teachers received information that one student was carrying the items on campus. Police from the Sector 3 outpost reached the spot soon after.According to the school’s initial complaint, there was an ongoing dispute among students, and some may have intended to seek revenge.That account shifted after police examined the items. While school sources told TOI that there were fights among some students, police said the objects were brought for a birthday celebration.Police called the parents of the student for questioning but did not register a case. The student returned to school the next day, a decision that drew criticism from sections of the school administration over the lack of strict action.School head Seema Gautam refuted claims of rivalry among the students. “Police verified that the gun was a broken toy air gun. As for the knife, a student brought a regular kitchen knife used for cutting vegetables because it was his birthday and he wanted to cut a cake. The student panicked after teachers warned against bringing prohibited items, so he hid it in another student’s bag. There is no truth to rumours of student enmity or fights. We immediately cautioned the students on the same day about bringing such items to school, and officials are visiting to review the matter,” Gautam said.However, a teacher, requesting anonymity, questioned the explanation: “How is it an ordinary knife when you get a knife to cut a cake along with the cake itself? Why would a student bring such a big knife to school? And an air gun for what kind of birthday celebration?”The episode has also highlighted deeper systemic issues at the school, which was started in the 2025-26 academic session under MLA Moolchand Sharma and is currently functioning without a single regular teacher for nearly 600 students from classes 6 to 12, relying entirely on deputed staff. With limited faculty, frequent free periods and no security guard on campus, concerns over discipline and safety persist, while the absence of senior education officials at the school immediately after the incident has further raised questions over administrative response.
