Nepal human rights panel urges Indian counterpart to ensure justice for KIIT victim

Bhubaneswar: The National Human Rights Commission of Nepal has urged its Indian counterpart to investigate the unnatural death of a 20-year-old student at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) here and ensure justice for her.

The alleged death by suicide of B Tech student Prakriti Lamsal and the subsequent attack on protesting Nepalese pupils at KIIT and their eviction from the campus created a furore, prompting the Nepal government to intervene in the matter.

Nepal NHRC, in a press release, said it has written to the National Human Rights Commission of India requesting it to probe the suspicious death of the woman, who hailed from Kathmandu, and provide speedy justice to the students who were allegedly beaten up and mistreated at KIIT.

It urged India's NHRC to ensure security for the Nepalese students and ensure that they can study in a fear-free environment, besides bringing the university officials and individuals involved in the incident to book.

Based on the complaints received, the commission also sought information from the Nepal Embassy in India about the incident and the condition of the students, the release said.

As it was reported that Nepalese students who were forced to leave the campus due to the circumstances arising from the suicide are still unable to return in a fear-free environment, the commission urges the Government of Nepal to take further diplomatic initiatives in this regard and create an environment where students can study, it said.

Nepal's Foreign Minister Dr Arzu Rana Deuba on February 22 spoke to Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi over the phone and insisted that the teachers and staffers who misbehaved with Nepalese students be removed from KIIT.

The state government, on its part, also issued instructions to the KIIT authorities to take prompt action to restore the confidence of Nepalese students who have not returned to the campus so far.

The unrest began on the KIIT campus on February 16 when Nepalese students wanted to see the body of the woman and demanded justice. Following this, a section of KIIT staffers allegedly attacked them, and the institute ordered their eviction from the hostel.

Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli has also expressed concern over the incident and rushed two embassy officials to Bhubaneswar to take stock of the situation.

Earlier, during a discussion in the Odisha Assembly, BJD member Ganeswar Behera had alleged that there has been a human rights violation in KIIT and the incident has earned a bad name for the state as well as the country.