Three more accused have been arrested for alleged criminal conspiracy and abetting a 20-year-old student’s suicide at a college in Odisha’s Balasore. The student set herself afire over inaction on her sexual harassment complaint against her department head.
Police said she was allegedly instigated to take the extreme step, and some of the students reportedly filmed her self-immolation and aided the act instead of intervening.
The three accused arrested late on Sunday include a member, Jyotiprakash Biswal, and an office bearer, Subhra Sambit Nayak, of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s student wing, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). “…we found their involvement in instigating the woman to take the extreme step,” said a police officer, who did not want to be named.
The three accused were produced in a court and remanded in 14-day judicial custody. Biswal was interrogated to reconstruct the events leading to the incident.
ABVP national joint organising secretary Govind Nayak refused to comment when asked about Nayak and Biswal.
On July 1, the 20-year-old student registered a complaint with the college’s Internal Complaints Committee, accusing Samir Kumar Sahoo of sexual harassment. Sahoo had debarred her and eight other students from appearing for an internal examination on June 30, citing their low attendance.
The student met the college principal, Dilip Ghose, and Sahoo on July 12 before pouring petrol on herself and self-immolating. She died two days later.
Sahoo and Ghose were arrested under Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita’s sections 108 (abetment to suicide), 75(1)(ii )(demanding sexual favours as a form of sexual harassment), 78 (stalking), 351 (2) (criminal intimidation), and 3(5) (common intention).
The First Information Report lodged in the case said Sahoo allegedly mentally tortured the 20-year-old for refusing sexual favours. It accused Ghosh of inaction and mentally torturing her, and threatening her to accede, failing which he would rusticate her from the college and fail her in the exam.
Ghosh allegedly called her to his office and forced her to apologise to Sahoo and coerced her to withdraw the complaint. The FIR said the behaviour compelled her to set herself afire.
A four-member University Grants Commission fact-finding team on Friday completed its probe into the suicide. The state higher education department, the National Commission for Women, and the National Human Rights Commission have also completed their separate probes.
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