The Odisha Police Crime Branch, investigating the self-immolation of a 20-year-old student of FM College in Balasore, on Sunday, said that she set herself on fire because an internal inquiry committee at her institute did not validate her sexual harassment complaint.
Addressing a press conference in Bhubaneswar, Crime Branch DG Vinaytosh Mishra stated that the CB officers found inconsistencies in statements of the witnesses.
The director general of the crime branch explained that while the college authorities acted on her complaint and conducted an internal inquiry but the internal inquiry team did not corroborate her allegations.
“Her extreme step was a reaction to the non-validation of her plaint,” he said.
The Crime Against Women & Children Wing (CAW&CW) of the Crime Branch has been probing the girl student’s death, which stemmed from her alleged complaint against Samira Kumar Sahoo, the Head of the Integrated BEd Department at Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College. The student self-immolated on July 12 and passed away on the night of July 14, sparking widespread outrage across the nation.
The Crime Branch took over the investigation from the Balasore district police on July 17.
“We have found inconsistencies between statements of witnesses to the internal complaints committee and police, and their posts on social media. They have given different views and opinions before and after the incident. A thorough analysis of every statement is necessary, and it will take time. A proper analysis is needed against digital evidence to reach a conclusion,” the DG said.
Mishra assured that justice would be served according to the law and that no innocent person would be held responsible for the student’s death.
He emphasized the government’s serious approach to the matter, with CAW&CW Inspector General S. Shyni visiting Balasore twice to oversee the investigation.
Acknowledging the complexity of the case, Mishra mentioned that local police had already arrested two persons – Sahoo and Dillip Ghose, the then-principal of Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College.
The Crime Branch’s mandate is to identify all individuals directly or indirectly involved, he added.
He further said the CCTV footage and other digital evidence collected by the Crime Branch are being sent to the State Forensic Science Laboratory for analysis.
Statements of internal complaints committee members and college staff are also being recorded, as the probe seeks to determine if anyone provoked her to commit self-immolation.
“The crime branch has got a number of leads in the case. We assure all that the probe has been conducted in a fair manner to ensure justice for the 20-year-old woman,” Mishra said.
In response to a query, the Crime Branch DG clarified that the victim had not filed a written police complaint, although the college’s then-principal had invited some police officials to a meeting regarding her allegation.
Apart from the Crime Branch, a four-member fact-finding team from the University Grants Commission (UGC) and a high-level team from Odisha’s higher education department are also conducting separate investigations.
The UGC team’s probe entered its third day on Sunday, with members declining to disclose their findings.
An official confirmed that members of the college’s internal complaints committee are being questioned by the investigating teams, and their statements have been recorded, though details were not divulged.
