Odisha College Student Set Herself on Fire after Harassment, Accused Arrested

A heart-wrenching incident has shook Odisha and the internet where a 20-year-old undergraduate student of Fakir Mohan Autonomous College, Balasore set herself on fire. She is currently battling for her in the hospital. It was a suicidal protest, in broad daylight, against months of reported sexual harassment by a faculty member and the unwillingness of the college administration to act on her repeated pleas. 

 

The Incident: A Call of Justice Unheard

The student, Soumyashri Bisi, a second-year integrated B.Ed student, burned herself on July 12 outside the office of the principal, the last time she visited this official. She has undergone a burn injury of more than 90% and is currently in a critical condition in AIIMS Bhubaneswar, under ventilator care. One of the other students, who attempted to rescue her, has also received severe burns and is in the hospital. 

 

When the principal, Dilip Ghosh, was questioned, he said, "The student had come to me and wanted action against the teacher. I counselled her as she looked tense. She had lodged a complaint on June 30 and an internal complaint committee on 30th June and an ICC inquiry was going on.”

 

Why did the student burn herself in odisha? 

1. Months of Harassment: The student claims to have been the subject of constant harassment of the Head of the Integrated B.Ed Department, Sameer Kumar Sahu, according to her family and friends. He supposedly expressed unwanted requests more than once and threatened with academic consequences in case of refusal.
2. Ignored Formal Complaints: The brave student filed written complaints with the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) of the college along with the police but no strong measures were taken. According to the ICC, there was a committee to deal with the situation but it did not succeed, and the student was left lonely and under pressure.
3. Forced Withdrawal of Complaint: The student’s father claimed that the principal, Dilip Ghosh, had pressured his daughter to withdraw her complaint, to the extent of threatening to rusticate her should she fail to do so. It was this institutional indifference and bullying that drove her to the brink and she had to take such a big step in order to seek justice. 

 

Aftermath: Public Outcry and Actions

As soon the incident went viral, the Odisha government swiftly responded. The accused faculty member, Sameer Kumar Sahu, was arrested and the principal, Dilip Ghosh was suspended. The Higher Education Department has also constituted a high level inquiry committee consisting of senior women officers to enquire into the matter.

 

Additionally, to attend to the student 24X7, an expert panel has been mobilised by AIIMS Bhubaneswar comprising specialists in critical care, nephrology, surgery, pulmonology and anaesthesia. Her status is still in critical condition, where the vital organs are also harmed with the degree of the scorching.

 

Furthermore, student groups, women organizations as well as political parties have erupted and expressed their fury towards the incident. The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee has set up a fact finding committee on this and Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj have promised to take a stringent action and stand by the family of the victim.

 

The family of Soumyashri refers to their daughter as a strong and talented young woman who is a master trainer in self-defence, disaster management trainee, poet and social worker. Her father, devastated by the turn of events, has vowed to fight for justice, highlighting the urgent need for institutional reforms to protect students from harassment and ensure accountability.

 

What Did This Incident Do?

The Odisha campus tragedy has fueled the issue of campus security, appropriateness of internal complaints committees and the dire necessity of gender-sensitive change in educational institutions. Activists and learners are demanding:

• Transparent and prompt investigations on claims of harassment.
• The liability of college officials over the failure of duty of care.
• Better protection systems to the victims of harassment.

 

With all eyes on Odisha and the country in general keeping their fingers crossed, the fight to salvage the life of Soumyashri is going on in the ICU of AIIMS Bhubaneswar. This tragic event is a stark reminder that institutional indifference and the lack of systemic change could ever usher another student or student to this extent of desperation in the future.