Bihar police are looking for a private school owner and a teacher after a 15-year-old student died allegedly because he was brutally beaten for smoking.

The pupil has been identified as Bajrangi Kumar, a Class X student of Rising Star Private Residential School at Madhuban in East Champaran district.

The boy was allegedly thrashed on Saturday in such a brutal manner that he fell unconscious. He was taken to a hospital in Muzaffarpur, the nearest big city, where he succumbed to his injuries while undergoing medical treatment on the same evening.

“The victim’s mother Urmila Devi informed us about it on Sunday morning,” Pakridayal sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Sunil Kumar Singh told reporters.

“We have registered an FIR against the school director Vijay Kumar Yadav and a teacher Jai Prakash Yadav on the basis of the statement of the victim’s mother. Both are absconding and efforts are being made to arrest them. Further investigations are on,” Singh added.

The school issued a statement on Monday saying that Bajrangi consumed poison after being confronted by the director and the teachers for smoking.

“He (Bajrangi) was afraid that the teachers will complain to his family about smoking and he consumed poison. He was rushed by the school to Muzaffarpur for treatment, where he died in a hospital,” the statement said.

Bajrangi was a native of Banjaria village which is a few kilometres away from the school. However, he was studying as a resident scholar.

The boy, who had gone home during the ongoing summer holidays, went to Madhuban market on Saturday morning with his friends, where Vijay and Jai Prakash spotted him smoking.

Vijay and Jai allegedly dragged Bajrangi to the school where he was mercilessly beaten. He fell unconscious and was taken to a private clinic at Madhuban where the doctors referred him to Muzaffarpur for better treatment.

Bajrangi’s mother Urmila said: “Vijay informed me of my son’s death on Saturday night. We rushed to Muzaffarpur, brought the body to Madhuban and informed the police.

“My son had injuries on the neck and other parts of his body. His private parts had bled. We had admitted him to this school just two months ago and have now lost him forever.”

The victim’s father Hari Kishore Rai works as a labourer in Punjab and was on his way back home after learning about the death of his son.