Armaan Singh Sarai locked up for no fault of his.
By Dileep Thekkethil
A 12-year-old Sikh boy in Texas who allegedly cracked a joke to his classmate or the classmate joked otherwise that he was carrying a bomb in the backpack had to spend three days in a juvenile center, reported the boy’s cousin via a Facebook post early this week.
According to police, Armaan Singh Sarai, who goes to Nichols Junior High School, Dallas, Texas reportedly told one of his classmates that he was carrying a bomb in his backpack. His friend told a teacher that Sarai was planning to blow up the school.
But Sarai says it was the other student who created the whole issue mistaking his backpack for a bomb.
“I thought it was a joke, so I started laughing and he started laughing. The next thing you know, I’m reading with my friend and police come in, grab me and take me outside,” Sarai was quoted by Dallas Morning News.
Police spokesman Lt. Christopher Cook was quoted by Dallas Morning News saying “People have got to learn they cannot make these types of threats, which cause alarm, which cause evacuations. Just because you say it’s a joke, it doesn’t get you out of trouble.”
It is alleged that the school authorities, without questioning or checking the boy, informed the police who later took him away. His parents also alleged that the school authorities didn’t care to notify about what had happened to their son.
Arlington Independent School District (AISD) spokesperson in a written statement said “The AISD will do what is necessary to maintain the safety and security of its students, and we are confident that our actions are appropriate in all respects.”
Sarai’s cousin Ginee Haer wrote in her Facebook post, “A bully in class thought it would be funny to accuse him (Armaan Singh Sarai) of having a bomb, and so the principal, without any questioning, interrogation, or notification to his parents, called the police.”
The boy was sent to a juvenile detention center and was released on December 15th after spending three days there.
Her Facebook post which has received thousands of likes, also read, “Worried & frightened at home, his family was concerned as to why he had not reached home right after school. They started calling every police department in the area, only to find out he was sent to a Juvenile facility.”
Sarai’s family said he was framed for being a Sikh.
“Armaan was born and raised in Texas by a loving #Sikh family. In his spare time, he loves spending time with his family, watching tv, and playing video games. In his family, are his mom, dad, two sisters and a brother who love him more than life, after all he’s the baby in the family,” his cousin said.
“His family moved to Dallas, Texas about three to four months ago, and being the new kid wasn’t that easy for him. It made it especially hard since he isn’t able to get out much, due to a heart condition he was born with,” Haer wrote.
“The heart condition has led him to having three open heart surgeries, and he isn’t able to do a lot of extra curricular activities. But his love from his family and friends has always been enough to keep his heart filled. His family and friends would describe to be really funny, nice, and a caring human being,” she informed.
Gurdeep Kaur, Sarai’s mother, works near the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, preparing in-flight meals and his father is training to become a semi-truck driver, reported The Washington Post.
“It was my decision to move here but now I’m thinking why we came here,” an emotional Gurdeep Kaur told the Dallas Morning News.
The incident comes just months after another Texas boy; Ahmed Mohamed was arrested from his school for allegedly bringing a handmade clock, which apparently looked like a bomb to the school authorities who informed the police. He has since then sued the school and the town.