Tribal man arrested for attempting to poison schoolchildren

In a disturbing incident from Adilabad district, Telangana, a 27-year-old tribal man was arrested for allegedly attempting to poison schoolchildren by contaminating utensils and water used for preparing the mid-day meal at a government primary school.

According to police, the accused, identified as Soyam Kistu, sprinkled pesticide on cooking utensils and mixed the chemical in a water bucket in the school kitchen.

The act came to light when the school principal noticed the kitchen door’s latch was broken and a strong chemical odour emanating from the room.

“There was a pungent smell in the room, and the utensils appeared to be laced with an unknown chemical. Water in a bucket also contained some suspicious substance. I immediately alerted our cook, Chandrakala,” the principal stated in her police complaint.

She further alleged that the act seemed like a deliberate attempt to harm the schoolchildren and herself.

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Adilabad Superintendent of Police Akhil Mahajan confirmed Kistu’s arrest, adding that an empty pesticide bottle was recovered during a search of the school premises.

During interrogation, Kistu reportedly admitted to using pesticide originally intended for his family’s cotton field, with the intent to target the schoolchildren.

An investigation is underway to ascertain the motive behind the attempted poisoning, and legal proceedings have been initiated. Fortunately, no harm was reported as the incident was caught in time.