The President of Odisha’s National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), the student wing of Congress party, has been arrested by for allegedly raping a 19-year-old female engineering student after spiking her soft drink with intoxicants in a hotel room in Bhubaneswar.
The NSUI Odisha President Udit Pradhan has been arrested by the Mancheswar Police in Bhubaneswar. According to police sources, he was detained late on Sunday night and is set to be produced before a court on Monday.
The arrest followed a formal complaint lodged by the survivor.
According to the FIR, the incident occurred on March 18. The girl, along with a female friend and a male classmate, had gone out to Master Canteen Square in Bhubaneswar.
There, her friend introduced them to Udit Pradhan. Later, they went to a hotel in the Nayapalli area in Udit’s vehicle.
At the hotel, the group consumed alcohol. However, the victim declined to drink. According to the rape survivor, Udit allegedly offered her a soft drink, which he had secretly spiked with sedatives, police sources said.
After consuming the drink, the victim began to feel dizzy and requested to be dropped off at home. However, Udit and others reportedly refused. The girl soon lost consciousness.
The victim said, when she regained consciousness, she found that Udit had allegedly sexually assaulted her. When she confronted him, he reportedly threatened her with serious consequences if she spoke out or filed a complaint, according to the sources.
Despite the delay in filing the complaint, police have started a full investigation, citing the gravity of the allegations.
Meanwhile, the concerned authorities confirmed that inquiries are underway and additional details will be released as the probe progresses.
The incident comes few weeks after the arrest of Trinamool Congress student leader Monojit Mishra for the rape of a female student of the South Calcutta Law College in West Bengal.
The woman was allegedly raped by two senior students and an alumnus of the institute in the guard’s room on June 25.
