Odisha CM assures Nepal officials justice in KIIT suicide case

Bhubaneswar:

Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Wednesday held talks with two officials of the Nepal Embassy, following the death of a Nepali girl student at the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) in Bhubaneswar, and assured that justice will be done in the case.

He also assured that peace and normalcy would be restored on the campus and urged Nepali students to return to campus and resume their studies, the chief minister’s office (CMO) said in a post on X.

The CMO also said that a discussion was held at the State Guest House with officials from Nepal, attended by state parliamentary affairs minister Mukesh Mahaling, higher education minister Suryabanshi Suraj, and chief secretary Manoj Ahuja.

“Additionally, the Foreign Minister of Nepal Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba spoke with Shri Suryabanshi Suraj over the phone regarding the matter,” the CMO said.

Earlier, Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli, in an X post on Monday, had said, “Our Embassy in New Delhi has dispatched two officers to counsel Nepali students affected in Odisha. Additionally, arrangements have been made to ensure they have the option to either remain in the hostel or return home, based on their preference.”

Tensions rose on the campus in Bhubaneswar after a third-year BTech student from Nepal was found dead in her hostel room on Sunday evening. The 20-year-old computer science student allegedly died by suicide after being harassed by a 21-year-old male student, authorities said.

The state government on Wednesday told Nepali officials that a help desk has been set up at KIIT to assist Nepali students who have returned to the campus or those returning to the campus.

“We have also deployed a senior official at KIIT. Steps are also being taken to ensure that there is a conducive atmosphere in the KIIT campus so that the students can concentrate on studies for their examination on February 28,” said Suraj, adding that KIIT will bear the travel expenses of students who had reached Nepal and conduct re-examination for those who missed the tests.

Meanwhile, the three-member SIT headed by additional chief secretary of home Satyabrata Sahu visited KIIT campus to investigate the chain of events that led to the suicide of the girl student as well as the subsequent violence.

“As per the state government’s direction, we have visited the (KIIT) campus, including the hostel and other areas. We will continue our assessment and submit an appropriate report to the government. We have also met the Nepal delegation and held discussions. The state government is fully committed to taking action as per the law,” said Sahu.

Meanwhile, Bhubaneswar police commissioner S Dev Dutt Singh said the police has brought the accused, a 21-year-old mechanical engineering student of KIIT on three day remand for further interrogation. Police officials said they have filed an application to get the accused on remand.

“The accused had shot some objectionable video and photographs of the victim on his mobile phone and used it to blackmail her. As the matter reached the international relation cell of KIIT a couple of times, the accused was warned and then suspended for a month. On the day she killed herself, the two had a bitter fight in the morning and a few hours later she hanged herself from the ceiling fan. Once we interrogate the accused, the chain of events leading to the suicide would be clear,” said a police official.

In the meantime, the electronic devices belonging to the deceased student, including a mobile phone and laptop, have been dispatched to a forensic lab for a comprehensive data analysis. The investigating team has summoned institution’s international relations officer, the hostel warden, and others who are linked to the case.