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Biju Janata Dal chief Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday heavily criticised the Odisha government, calling their administration a "failed system" and blamed their inaction for the death of a Balasore college student, who self-immolated herself in protest over sexual harassment by her teacher.
Patnaik said that her death "was not an accident" but a result of system that "remained silent instead of helping." "It is even more disturbing to think how a failed system can take someone's life. The most painful part is that this was not an accident, but rather the result of a system that remained silent instead of helping. Struggling for justice, the girl ultimately closed her eyes," Naveen Patnaik said in a post on X. Emphasising the alleged inaction by the administration, Patnaik said that the student was ignored by the authority before despite repeated attempt to seek help. "With great courage, she had written to the college principal, informing them about the sexual harassment she had faced. Even after being ignored by the college authorities, she did not give up. To seek justice, she reached out to the Higher Education Minister, the Chief Minister's office, and even a Union Minister. She also personally met the Balasore MP to share her plight," Patnaik said. Holding the state government accountable for the death of the Fakir Mohan Autonomous College student, Patnaik called it "planned injustice" "If even one person had taken responsibility and intervened personally, perhaps the girl's life could have been saved. She did not lose her life solely due to physical trauma but also because of the negligence of the state government, which left her alone in her struggle. The entire sequence of events reveals that this is nothing less than institutional betrayal--a planned injustice," he said. He urged the Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati to ensure take action against the perpetrators and those who failed to help her despite victim's desperate pleas "I once again urge the Honorable Governor (@GovernorOdisha) to ensure that not only the college authorities but also those in power, who failed to take any action despite the victim's desperate pleas, are held accountable," he said. On Monday, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Bhubaneswar confirmed the death of the 20-year-old student from Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in Odisha's Balasore, who had attempted self-immolation. The Department of Burn Centre, AIIMS Bhubaneswar, said in a statement that the patient was brought to the casualty on July 12 and was referred from Balasore District Headquarters Hospital to AIIMS Bhubaneswar. The 20-year-old student set herself on fire after allegedly facing prolonged sexual harassment by her college's Head of Department. Despite lodging a formal complaint and seeking help from the principal, her pleas were ignored, leading to the tragic incident. The incident occurred at Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College. (ANI)
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