Student’s suicide at KIIT, Nepali students forced to vacate campus, one in police custody

More than 500 Nepali students were forced to leave Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) in Bhubaneswar amid tensions following the alleged suicide of a female student on Monday. The deceased Prakriti Lamsal, a 20-year-old student hailed from Nepal. The third year B-Tech student was found hanging from the ceiling fan of her hostel room on Sunday evening, following which the university campus witnessed massive protests by students.

Nepali students were seen leaving the KIIT campus and rushing to the nearest Cuttack railway station, which is 30 km from the institute. Several students were left stranded at the railway station due to last minute rush and unavailability of train tickets to return home.

The university said it asked the students from Nepal to go back home, after which two buses full of Nepali students were dropped at the Cuttack Railway Station on Tuesday morning.

The police have appealed to the students to maintain peace after their protests sparked tension on the campus last night. Two platoons of police personnel have been deployed to maintain law and order at the campus.

Abetment to suicide against rumoured boyfriend

Pinak Mishra, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Bhubaneswar has stated that the police have lodged a case on the allegation that a male student abated her suicide. “The accused student is in police custody and subjected to interrogation. The police have seized the mobile phone, laptop, and other gadgets of the deceased woman. We are undertaking a scientific investigation into the matter,” the DCP said.

The deceased students’ friends and classmates have alleged that the victim was being harassed by a boy named Advik Srivastava for several months. Even though she reported the matter to the university’s International Relations seeking help, no help came alleged her classmates.

Nepali students asked to vacate campus

Following the incident, Nepali students of the university demanded a thorough investigation and arrest of the accused. As tension escalated, the university issued a notice asking all Nepali students to vacate the campus. The statement read, “The University is closed for all international students from Nepal. They are hereby directed to vacate the university campus today, February 17.”

Statement issued by KIIT

Meanwhile, a statement issued by the KIIT about the incident hints about a love affair between the deceased and a male student of the same university. The male student has been charged with abetment to suicide by the police. The accused student is in police custody.

The statement issued by KIIT regarding the death of the student reads, “A Nepali student studying in the third year of B-Tech committed suicide in the hostel yesterday. It is suspected that the student was in a love affair with another student studying at KIIT. It is suspected that the student may have committed suicide due to some reason.”