CM speaks to Nepali counsellors, urges students to return
Bhubaneswar: CM Mohan Charan Majhi on Wednesday assured Nepal of quick justice after protests over the alleged removal of Nepali students from a city institute over the suicide of a fellow student on campus.
The CM met two Nepali officials and urged the Nepali students to come back to KIIT deemed to be university and continue their education without any fear. While many Nepali students remained outside Bhubaneswar following Monday’s campus eviction, about 100 who returned were hesitant to enter their hostel, concerned about potential institutional repercussions. Some of the Nepali students sat in silent protest outside the campus on Tuesday evening and Wednesday. Several outfits joined them, seeking justice.
The chief minister’s office (CMO) informed the Nepal govt about an ongoing high-level state govt investigation, ensuring all measures for Nepali students’ safety. A three-member fact-finding committee, formed by the govt on Tuesday, began the investigation by visiting the KIIT campus on Wednesday to document the sequence of events that led to the unpleasant incident.
“We visited the spot and discussed with Nepali students as well as the KIIT authorities. Our inquiry is in progress,” said the probe committee’s head Satyabrata Sahu, who is the home department’s additional chief secretary.
On X, the CMO posted, “The chief minister spoke with Nepali counsellors Shri Sanjeeb Das Sharma and Navin Raj Adhikari, assuring them that justice will be served in the case of the deceased KIIT student. He also assured that peace and normalcy would be restored on the KIIT campus.”
The CMO said that Nepali officials also met state govt representatives, including chief secretary Manoj Ahuja, health minister Mukesh Mahaling, and higher education minister Suryabanshi Suraj, to discuss restoration of normalcy in the KIIT campus. “Additionally, the Foreign Minister of Nepal Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba spoke with minister Suryabanshi Suraj over the phone regarding the matter,” the CMO’s post on X read.
Police also summoned two suspended women officers from KIIT for questioning, who allegedly mocked the protesting students by making derogatory remarks about Nepal’s budget and GDP on Monday.
“We will interrogate the two women officers and some other KIIT staff. They have been served with notices,” deputy commissioner of police, Pinak Mishra told TOI.
Police said a suspected suicide note that was recovered from the deceased BTech student’s room has been sent to the state forensic science laboratory’s handwriting bureau for analysis. The two-page note in the Nepali language detailed continuous harassment and blackmailing by a classmate, arrested Monday for abetting her suicide.
“We have sent the accused student’s phone and laptop to the forensic laboratory for verification. We have approached a court requesting a three-day police remand of the accused for interrogation,” Mishra said.
Dr Arzu Rana Deuba, Nepal foreign affairs minister urged Odisha govt to provide a safe ambience for Nepali students. “We are continuously following up on the death of Nepali student Prakriti Lamsal in the hostel of Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) University. Today, I also spoke to Odisha’s higher education minister Suryavanshi Suraj on the phone. I urged him to conduct a fair investigation into Lamsal’s death and take legal action against the culprits, as well as to provide a safe environment for Nepali students in colleges there,” Deuba posted on X.
The CM met two Nepali officials and urged the Nepali students to come back to KIIT deemed to be university and continue their education without any fear. While many Nepali students remained outside Bhubaneswar following Monday’s campus eviction, about 100 who returned were hesitant to enter their hostel, concerned about potential institutional repercussions. Some of the Nepali students sat in silent protest outside the campus on Tuesday evening and Wednesday. Several outfits joined them, seeking justice.
The chief minister’s office (CMO) informed the Nepal govt about an ongoing high-level state govt investigation, ensuring all measures for Nepali students’ safety. A three-member fact-finding committee, formed by the govt on Tuesday, began the investigation by visiting the KIIT campus on Wednesday to document the sequence of events that led to the unpleasant incident.
“We visited the spot and discussed with Nepali students as well as the KIIT authorities. Our inquiry is in progress,” said the probe committee’s head Satyabrata Sahu, who is the home department’s additional chief secretary.
On X, the CMO posted, “The chief minister spoke with Nepali counsellors Shri Sanjeeb Das Sharma and Navin Raj Adhikari, assuring them that justice will be served in the case of the deceased KIIT student. He also assured that peace and normalcy would be restored on the KIIT campus.”
The CMO said that Nepali officials also met state govt representatives, including chief secretary Manoj Ahuja, health minister Mukesh Mahaling, and higher education minister Suryabanshi Suraj, to discuss restoration of normalcy in the KIIT campus. “Additionally, the Foreign Minister of Nepal Dr. Arzu Rana Deuba spoke with minister Suryabanshi Suraj over the phone regarding the matter,” the CMO’s post on X read.
Police also summoned two suspended women officers from KIIT for questioning, who allegedly mocked the protesting students by making derogatory remarks about Nepal’s budget and GDP on Monday.
“We will interrogate the two women officers and some other KIIT staff. They have been served with notices,” deputy commissioner of police, Pinak Mishra told TOI.
Police said a suspected suicide note that was recovered from the deceased BTech student’s room has been sent to the state forensic science laboratory’s handwriting bureau for analysis. The two-page note in the Nepali language detailed continuous harassment and blackmailing by a classmate, arrested Monday for abetting her suicide.
“We have sent the accused student’s phone and laptop to the forensic laboratory for verification. We have approached a court requesting a three-day police remand of the accused for interrogation,” Mishra said.
Dr Arzu Rana Deuba, Nepal foreign affairs minister urged Odisha govt to provide a safe ambience for Nepali students. “We are continuously following up on the death of Nepali student Prakriti Lamsal in the hostel of Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) University. Today, I also spoke to Odisha’s higher education minister Suryavanshi Suraj on the phone. I urged him to conduct a fair investigation into Lamsal’s death and take legal action against the culprits, as well as to provide a safe environment for Nepali students in colleges there,” Deuba posted on X.
