Nabarangpur/Umarkot: Violence allegedly linked to a college students’ union election in Umrkot escalated Saturday, leaving a non-student, Deep Kamal Mohapatra, seriously injured in a stabbing incident.
He was initially taken to Umarkot Sub-Divisional Hospital and was later shifted to Visakhapatnam in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh as his condition deteriorated.
Tension prevailed at the hospital following the incident, while police launched an investigation after a complaint was lodged at Umarkot police station.
According to reports, an argument broke out between two groups of non-students outside a college in Umarkot Friday while the election process was underway. Although the situation appeared to have calmed down temporarily, tensions resurfaced Saturday morning.
According to the complaint, Abhishek Panda was allegedly attacked by members of the rival group at DNK. Later, when Mohapatra’s group was holding discussions near the Trinath Temple in DNK over the incident, a group of around 30 to 40 youths allegedly arrived and launched a sudden attack.
Eyewitnesses said Mohapatra was attacked with knives. He sustained injuries to his abdomen, hands and legs before being rushed to the sub-divisional hospital in a critical condition.
The incident triggered tension across Umarkot, with an uneasy atmosphere prevailing at the hospital as well. Shops and markets remained closed, and vehicle movement was disrupted. Police personnel were deployed at several locations across the town to maintain law and order.
Nabarangpur Superintendent of Police Partha Jagadish Kashyap was present in Umarkot to assess the situation.
Police are investigating the case to establish the motive behind the attack and identify those involved. The exact circumstances leading to the violence are yet to be ascertained.
Pertinent to mention here that several instances of violence and unrest have surfaced from different parts of Odisha since the declaration of students’ union election in the state, scheduled to be held October 15.
Tension erupted at Utkal University in Bhubaneswar after the candidate list was not published in the Commerce Block, leading to a clash among students and an unpleasant situation on the campus. The university authorities are yet to respond to the incident.
In another incident, tension erupted at Sailabala Women’s College in Kataka over the rejection of nomination papers filed by ABVP candidates. Students gathered in front of the college gate, leading to unrest. The college authorities are yet to respond.
Meanwhile, students at the new campus of Fakir Mohan University in Baleshwar staged a protest, alleging that the names of several candidates had been removed after they filed their nomination papers. The Vice-Chancellor said some students arrived after the deadline and their applications were therefore not accepted.
A student, Chandan Kamila, said, “A total of eight posts, including the president’s post, are up for election at Fakir Mohan University. The authorities are rejecting nominations on attendance grounds, but we suspect that candidates opposing the ABVP are being selectively targeted.”
In a separate incident, students staged a sit-in and demonstration at Vikram Dev University in Jeypore over the rejection of presidential candidate Anurag Adhikari’s nomination.
Similarly, tension prevailed at Nimapara Autonomous College Saturday after the rejection of 39 candidates’ nominations for the students’ union election triggered protests. Protesters locked the main gate and staged a sit-in outside the administrative block and demanded that the rejected candidates be allowed to contest.
