Balasore: The body of the college student who set herself ablaze following alleged sexual harassment by a professor reached her village in Odisha’s Balasore district Tuesday.
The student died at the AIIMS Bhubaneswar Monday night after battling for life for about 60 hours. Her body was sent to the village after postmortem examination at the hospital, officials said.
Thousands of people thronged the crematorium ground to attend her cremation. Balasore MP Pratap Sarangi, district officials and others walked to the crematorium ground from the house of the student. The student’s body was cremated in the presence of her family and other villagers.
Local people demanded stringent action against the culprits responsible for the death of the student.
A local villager said the deceased student was active during natural calamities, particularly floods. “She used to help the administration to shift women to safe places during floods,” said a villager of Basta area, which is a flood-prone block in Balasore district.
“We do not believe that she will commit suicide. She was mentally strong and a brilliant student. She was my student. She was forced to commit suicide by setting herself on fire for being denied justice,” said a teacher at the crematorium ground.
The deceased student’s grandfather said that the government “failed” to give her justice, for which she ended her life. She had approached all from MLA to Union minister, said another villager.
The 20-year-old second-year B.Ed student of Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College, Balasore, had accused the Head of Education Department, Samira Kumar Sahu, of sexually harassing her.
She set herself on fire Saturday on the college campus over alleged inaction against the professor and suffered 95 per cent burns.
The woman was first admitted to the Balasore district hospital and then shifted to AIIMS Bhubaneswar for advanced treatment.