Palakkad: A class 11 student of Anakkara Government Higher Secondary School in Palakkad was suspended after he issued a death threat to the school principal for confiscating his phone.

A video of the incident, which has since gone viral on social media, shows the student angrily pointing at Principal A K Anil Kumar in his office and threatening, "I will finish you off when you step outside (the school)." The incident took place last Friday but only came to light on Tuesday when the video began circulating online, alarming both teachers and parents.

The student had brought the mobile phone to school in violation of the school’s strict no-phone policy. When the phone was confiscated, the student reacted with the threat. In response, the school’s Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) has filed a complaint with the Thrithala police and the Education Department is looking into the incident.

The PTA had strictly banned students from bringing mobile phones to school. Phones confiscated under this policy are only returned to parents, who must come to the school to collect them, said PTA president and Anakkara Panchayat member V P Shibu.

State Education Minister V Sivankutty directed an immediate investigation into the incident on Wednesday and asked for a report to be submitted to the Director of General Education. “As per the existing directive, mobile phones are not permitted in classrooms. The teachers' action complied with these regulations,” the minister stated in a Facebook post.