The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Saturday extended till December 5 the interim protection from arrest given to the owners of the Ryan Group of Institutions. Their anticipatory bail was extended on the condition that they cooperate with the investigation into a Class 2 student’s murder at Gurugram’s Ryan International School and do not leave the country, ANI reported.

Justice Surinder Gupta pronounced the order on the bail pleas of the school trustees – the group’s founding Chairman Augustine Pinto, Managing Director Grace Pinto and their son Ryan Pintos, The Indian Express reported

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The Gurugram Police had earlier summoned all three for interrogation in connection with the murder of the Class 2 student inside the school campus on September 8. The student was found with his throat slit inside a toilet on campus. A bus conductor was arrested later that day for attacking him. There are allegations against the Ryan Group school of violating security norms.

On Saturday, the court also granted regular bail to two other arrested officials – the group’s northern zone head Francis Thomas and another official Jayesh Thomas, according to The Indian Express. The Central Bureau of Investigation had opposed their bail pleas, saying the investigation was at a crucial stage and their custody was necessary to unearth the “larger conspiracy” behind the murder.

The family’s lawyer, Sushil Tekriwal, said he will move the Supreme Court against this order.

School responds to CBSE notice

On Saturday, the school also replied to the Central Board of Secondary Education’s show cause notice, saying it always followed all security guidelines.

On Thursday, the education board had told the Supreme Court that negligence on the part of Ryan International School’s administration had led to the student’s murder. It also said that the committee it had set up to investigate the incident found “severe irregularities and security lapses” on campus.