Congress calls Odisha bandh on July 17 after female student dies by self-immolation over sexual harassment

The Opposition Congress on Tuesday called for a statewide Odisha bandh on July 17 following the tragic death of a female student who set herself afire after her sexual harassment complaint against a college professor allegedly went unheard.

”Let’s fight against the BJP’s anti-women policy and injustice together. Let’s make our voices heard. Urging everyone to join us and make July 17 Odisha Bandh a huge success,” Bhakta Charan Das, president of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee, said at a press briefing.

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The 20-year-old student of Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in Odisha’s Balasore had reportedly lodged a formal complaint with the college principal and the Internal Complaints Committee of the college against the professor.

She had also made public appeals to Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj, and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and even apprised the women’s commission about it.

However, despite her repeated efforts, no action was taken against the professor, and the Internal Complaints Committee gave him a clean chit, leading to her taking the extreme step.

She was undergoing treatment at AIIMS Bhubaneswar, where she succumbed to her injuries on Monday night.

The incident has triggered a political storm with the Opposition Congress and Biju Janata Dal (BJD) holding the BJP government in the state responsible for her death

The Congress staged protests outside the hospital and burned posters of CM Majhi, raising slogans and demanding justice for the victim.

BJD leaders, too, lashed out at the government and staged protests outside the hospital.

Both parties also questioned the intention behind conducting the postmortem late at night.

A delegation of the BJP also met President Droupadi Murmu over the incident.

“It is shameful that atrocities are being done against women and tribals in Odisha…If such a thing is happening in the temples of education, then where should a woman go…When the President got to know about this incident, she showed concern,” BJD leader Sulata Deo said.

BJD leader Snehangini Chhuria also slammed the BJP government in the state, saying the “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” slogan has turned to “Beti Padhao, Beti Jalao” in Odisha.