President Murmu visits college student who set herself afire over harassment, Principal held

Bhubaneswar/Balasore: As the health condition of the 20-year-old college student who set herself ablaze following alleged sexual harassment by a professor continued to remain critical, the Odisha Police on Monday arrested the principal of the institute.

President Droupadi Murmu, who was at the AIIMS Bhubaneswar to attend its 5th Convocation ceremony, paid an unscheduled visit to the burn and plastic surgery department where the student is admitted, and enquired about her condition.

Alleging that women are not safe in BJP-ruled Odisha, opposition parties held demonstrations in Bhubaneswar and Balasore, while the student's mother demanded capital punishment for the culprits who were responsible for her daughter's suffering.

The second-year Integrated B.Ed student of Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College in Balasore set herself ablaze on the campus on Saturday, alleging inaction over her complaint against the professor.

The student who suffered 95 per cent burns was first admitted to the Balasore District Headquarters Hospital and then shifted to AIIMS Bhubaneswar for advanced treatment.

The Higher Education department had set up a three-member committee to probe into the incident.

Based on the panel's report, the police on Monday arrested the college Principal Dillip Ghose, who was suspended earlier.

The woman had gone to the principal’s chamber to learn the fate of her sexual harassment complaint against the head of the English department. She set fire to herself shortly after coming out of the chamber.

The principal was accused of asking the victim to withdraw her allegation against the teacher, as the Internal Complaint Committee (ICC) did not find any indication of the alleged act.

Her father blamed the principal for the plight of his daughter. Local MP and former union minister Pratap Sarangi also accused the principal of shielding the accused teacher, Samira Kumar Sahu, the head of the department of education.

The student's mother demanded capital punishment for the culprits, for whom her daughter suffered burn injuries, harassment and mental agony.

“I have doubts whether my daughter set herself on fire or someone else did it," the mother said.

Apart from the district police, a team of the state Crime Branch is also investigating the incident.

“To expedite police investigation, a Swift Trial Investigation (SIT) have been formed,” said Satyajit Naik, the DIG eastern range of police.

President Droupadi Murmu, who was in the AIIMS Bhubaneswar campus for a Convocation ceremony, visited the burn and plastic surgery department where the victim was undergoing treatment on a ventilator.

“The President enquired about the health condition of the girl and wanted to know if modern medical facilities for the treatment of the young woman is available. We informed her that the patient was in critical stage,” said Dr Ashutosh Biswas, the executive director of AIIMS Bhubaneswar.

The President also met a delegation of the opposition BJD which submitted a memorandum.

“We request your kind intervention over this sensitive issue and give necessary direction to the government and restore women's safety and justice system in the state,” the memorandum said.

Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati sought a detailed report from the state government on the circumstances that led to the incident.

He also asked Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj to inform him on the measures taken in the matter.

The state government on Monday directed all colleges and universities to ensure immediate compliance on instructions on internal committee under Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013.

This decision came after Chief Secretary Manoj Ahuja held a meeting with the Principal Secretaries of the Women and Child Development, Higher Education, and Health and Family Welfare departments on the issue.

The Regional Directorate of Education has instructed all colleges across the state to implement stringent measures to prevent sensitive incidents on campus.

In a directive issued to the principals of colleges, the Directorate said all educational institutions will ensure round-the-clock surveillance through in-house squad teams and CCTV monitoring systems.

Meanwhile, the alleged incident of 'sexual harassment' has led to political tensions in the state with opposition parties staging demonstrations and holding press conferences.

Odisha Mahila Congress president Meenakshi Bahinipati, along with party MLA Sofia Firdous, held a press conference in Delhi to highlight the issue of women’s safety at the national level.

In Odisha, Congress Legislature Party leader Rama Chandra Kadam, along with former Union minister Srikant Jena, held a press conference here demanding a judicial inquiry into the circumstances leading to the incident.

Members of the BJD students' wing lit “dipa” (earthen lamps) at Shree Ram temple here on Monday evening, praying for the speedy recovery of the woman.

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan visited AIIMS Bhubaneswar and met the parents and family members of the victim, while Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida accused the opposition of politicising the matter.

Addressing a press conference here, Odisha BJP vice-president Biranchi Narayan Tripathy alleged that social media posts indicate that Congress activists instigated the 20-year-old woman to die by suicide.