BALASORE: An air of mourning filled Palasi, the native village of the 20-year-old female student from Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in Balasore’s Bhograi block on Tuesday as her mortal remains were consigned to flames.
The victim had visited her home on July 5, on the occasion of Bahuda Yatra. Her aunt, Sashmita, recalled that she seemed stressed during the visit. “She took some photos of her cousins and they asked her to come again later so they could go out together,” she said.
Her cousins said that she left early on July 6 for the college. “That was the last time we saw her,” they said.
Neighbours recall her as a bright and a well-behaved student. She was one of the top scorers when she studied at the Rural Institute of Higher Studies in Bhograi. “We never expected her to take such a drastic step,” a local resident shared.
The villagers of Palasi echoed the family’s demand for justice, insisting that mere arrests were not enough. “We urge the government and judiciary to ensure the harshest punishment for the accused,” they said.
The victim, a second-year BEd student of the college, was allegedly harassed by head of department Samira Sahu for several months. However, alleging inaction by the college authorities, she had set herself ablaze on the college premises on Saturday and suffered 95 per cent burn injuries. She succumbed while undergoing treatment at AIIMS Bhubaneswar on Monday night.
Her uncle, Ramkrushna, demanded strict action against the assistant professor and the now-suspended principal of the college, Dillip Ghosh. “Both of them are responsible for my niece’s death. We want life imprisonment for Ghosh and a death sentence for Sahu. Only then will it send a strong message across the country to prevent such abuse by teachers,” he said.
Meanwhile, thousands gathered to bid farewell to the victim, including Balasore MP Pratap Sarangi, Bhogarai MLA Gautambuddha Das, and Balasore Sadar MLA Manas Dutta. Her body was handed over to the family after a postmortem and transported to Palasi in a hearse under police escort.
The cremation took place on Tuesday morning in the presence of family members, locals, and public representatives. MP Pratap Sarangi, who accompanied the procession on foot to the crematorium, expressed deep anguish and condemned the institutional failure that led to the tragedy.
Sarangi joined the victim’s relatives, who were carrying back the body from AIIMS-Bhubaneswar, at Phuladi and paid floral tributes before accompanying them till their native village Palasi.
Speaking to reporters, he said that the college administration, including Ghosh should be held accountable for the sequence of events. “It is deeply painful and disturbing. The principal failed in his duty and did not take timely action, even though the student had repeatedly approached him,” he said.
“I had asked her to lodge an FIR with the local police. Her death has left me deeply shocked,” Sarangi added. He also noted that some students were pretending to mourn while having allegedly provoked her. “No one will be spared. All involved will be brought under investigation, and appropriate action will be taken,” he warned.
Jaleswar SDPO Manash Deo confirmed that four platoons of police were deployed during the final rites to maintain law and order. The entire cremation process took nearly three hours.