Balasore student suicide: Odisha Crime Branch arrests two male students on the suspicion of instigating the victim to take her own life
In the ongoing investigation into the Balasore student self-immolation case, the Odisha Crime Branch has arrested two male students late on Sunday (3rd August) on suspicion of instigating the victim to commit suicide. The arrestees, identified as Subhra Sambit Nayak and Jyoti Prakash Biswal, were produced before the Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (SDJM) Court in Balasore, where they were denied bail.
Consequently, the two accused were remanded to 15-day judicial custody. The students have been arrested on charges relating to criminal conspiracy and abetment for suicide.
As per reports, the Crime Branch has concrete evidence linking the students to the circumstances leading up to the girl’s death. The evidence include digital evidence and eyewitness accounts combined with forensic analysis.
Notably, one of the students, Jyoti Prakash, sustained injuries while attempting to save the girl after she set herself on fire. He was admitted to SCB Medical College, Cuttack, for treatment and was later discharged. However, the investigators were suspicious of his role and believed that his attempt to rescue the girl might have been a cover to avoid suspicion. The other guy is Subhra Sambit Nayak. The number of arrests in the case has now reached four.
The victim set herself on fire due to inaction on her sexual harassment complaint
In an unfortunate incident, the 20-year-old victim, who was a student of B.Ed. at the Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College, Balasore, set herself on fire on 12th July due to inaction on her sexual harassment complaint against her Head of Department (HoD), Sameer Sahoo. Before setting herself on fire, she had a meeting with the college principal, Dilip Kumar Ghosh, in his office.
The victim, named Soumyashri Bisi, suffered over 90% burns and was getting medical care at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar. She succumbed to her burn injuries two days later. The victim had submitted a complaint of sexual harassment against Sahoo to the college principal and the police. She was disappointed over no significant action being taken against Sahoo. The college principal and the HoD were arrested by the police after the incident, and an investigation was launched.
The incident attracted widespread outrage and condemnation. Allegations of systemic harassment, administrative apathy and unsafe college environment emerged. A day after the victim filed a complaint of sexual harassment against the HoD, the majority of students from her class did not believe her and signed a letter in support of the HoD. Out of the total 100 students in her class, 71 supported Sahoo and called her complaint false.
In the two-page letter, the students praised Sahoo as a “great teacher who is known for his amiable ways.” They cast suspicion on the victim by stating in the letter that she levelled the allegations after she was debarred from the exam due to poor attendance. As per the FIR lodged by the victim’s cousin, the college forced her to withdraw her complaint and apologise to Samir Sahoo, just minutes before the incident.
A unit of the Crime Against Women (CAW) of the Odisha CID is investigating the HoD’s history of misconduct, the role of the college principal, and the reasons behind the smear campaign run against the victim through the letter.
Administrative inaction, combined with apathy and distrust shown by her peers, caused immense mental trauma to the victim, which seems to have pushed her to take the extreme step.
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