A BTech third-year student from Nepal was found dead in the hostel of the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT), triggering a major controversy. The deceased was identified as Prakriti Lamsal.
She was found dead in her room on Sunday afternoon. Prakrit, 20, was pursuing BTech Computer Science from the deemed to be university. She committed suicide by hanging herself from the ceiling fan. Sources said she committed suicide following strains in her relationship with her boyfriend. Her cousin had filed a police complaint alleging that she was being blackmailed by a male student which forced her to take the extreme step.
The death triggered unrest on the campus. After Nepalese students learnt about the death of the girl they blocked the road near the campus. On Monday morning, the university was closed for students from Nepal who were asked to vacate the university campus immediately.
A section of the Nepal students claimed they faced a lot of problems as they did not get any train tickets to travel back home. “We have been asked to vacate the hostel,” claimed a Nepalese student. They also alleged that the deceased took the extreme step as authorities failed to address her issue on time.
However, the authorities later in the evening asked the Nepalese students to return to the campus.
Following unrest and alleged forceful eviction of the students, Prime Minister of Nepal K. P. Sharma Oli intervened and tweeted, “Our Embassy in New Delhi has dispatched two officers to counsel Nepali students affected in Odisha. Additionally, arrangements have been made to ensure they have the option to either remain in their hostel or return home, based on their preference.”
A KIIT release said: “There was an unfortunate incident which took place late in the evening yesterday on the KIIT campus. Immediately after the incident, police investigated the matter and apprehended the culprit. The KIIT administration has taken all-out efforts to restore normalcy in the campus and hostels to resume the academic activities. An appeal is made to all our Nepali students who have or plan to leave the campus to return and resume the classes.”
KIIT director P. R. Dr Shradhanjali Nayak denied the allegations of harassment. “After we came to know about the students’ difficulties we asked them to return. There has been no forceful eviction. We have 500 Nepalese students. As tension prevails, many prefer to go to their homes. We still have more than 150 students on our campus. We appeal all to return,” she told The Telegraph.
Priyanshu Sah, a student, posted on X: “I’m a Nepali student at KIIT University, Bhubaneswar Odisha. Even after the press release the hostel authorities are still threatening us not to come to our hostel. They are also using abusive language. I’m still sitting at Bhubaneswar railway station from today morning.”
The Embassy of India, Kathmandu, in a release, said it is deeply saddened by the tragic death of a Nepali student at KIIT.
“It has been in touch with the authorities of KIIT as well as with the Odisha government. The embassy has been informed that the local authorities have initiated an investigation into the unfortunate incident,” the release said, adding that KIIT has appealed the students to return to the campus.
Bhubaneswar DCP Pinak Mishra said the accused who is believed to have abetted suicide has been detained. The students alleged that the victim was being harassed by his male friend for several months and despite reporting the matter to the international relations department of the university, there was no help.
An audio clip has surfaced in which the purported accused is heard verbally abusing and harassing the girl.