New Delhi:

As a university in Odisha was celebrating its three-day annual fest, a student’s body was discovered in her hostel room. Within hours, the discovery led to embassy-level talks between two countries. The death of Prakriti Lamsal, a 20-year-old Nepali student at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) in Bhubaneswar set off a storm of allegations, arrests, diplomatic unease, and student unrest. 

What Happened 

Prakriti, a third-year B.Tech (Computer Science) student, was found dead in her hostel room on Sunday afternoon. The police initially registered it as a case of suicide, but the circumstances surrounding her death triggered protests within the campus. 

Students from Nepal demanded an inquiry and accountability from the university administration whom they accuse of ignoring Prakriti’s requests for intervention. Prakriti was allegedly being subjected to both physical and verbal abuse by Advik Shrivastava, a 21-year-old BTech (Mechanical) student of the same university. In an audio file, which went viral after Prakriti’s body was discovered, a man can be heard unleashing an expletives-ridden tirade against a woman who can be heard sobbing. The man forces the woman to call herself a “wh*r*” and even manipulates an apology out of her. 

The audio features both individuals addressing each other as Advik and Prakriti, however, NDTV could not independently verify the clip. 

Advik, a resident of Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow, was arrested on Monday from outside Bhubaneswar’s airport and charged with abetment of suicide.

Prakriti’s body, after a post-mortem at AIIMS Bhubaneswar, has been handed over to her family. It will be flown to Nepal today. “I had sent my daughter for higher studies, trusting that she would be safe. What happened here is unacceptable,” said her father, Sunil Lamsal.

Students Manhandled

After Nepali students protested, KIIT University — founded and run by veteran Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader and former MP Achyuta Samanta — instead of engaging with the students, responded with force. Security personnel, along with senior university officials, allegedly manhandled protesting students, leading to a violent crackdown that was caught on camera. 

Videos circulated on social media showed students being physically assaulted and subjected to verbal abuse. In one of those videos, two senior university officials were also seen making derogatory remarks against Nepal, with one of them claiming that the country’s GDP is lower than KIIT’s budget for the roughly 40,000 students that the university caters to. 

#WATCH | Odisha: A https://t.co/jHgpcuG1h1 third-year girl student from Nepal was found dead in KIIT University (Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology) hostel in Bhubaneswar on 16th February. As per a notice issued by the University, the institute is hence closed sine die… pic.twitter.com/vVfgY140up

— ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2025

The protests continued overnight. Then the unexpected happened. With only days left for exams, all the Nepali students were told to leave the university premises. 

“The University is closed Sine Die for all the International students from Nepal. They are hereby directed to vacate the university campus immediately today on 17th February 2025,” a university statement read. 

The students were put on university buses and were sent packing to the railway station in Cuttack to fend for themselves. “They (KIIT) didn’t say anything, they just asked us to leave,” said one Nepali student. 

Odisha Government Steps In

The Odisha government on Tuesday formed a three-member fact-finding committee to investigate both the circumstances of Prakriti’s death and the university’s handling of student protests. The panel is led by the Additional Chief Secretary (Home), with members from the Higher Education and Women and Child Development departments.

State Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj admitted that KIIT authorities had failed to inform the government about the incident, including the forced eviction of foreign students. “The institution has been placed under notice, and appropriate legal and administrative action shall follow based on the findings of the fact-finding committee,” he said.

Mr Suraj questioned why Nepali students were de-boarded at Cuttack railway station and why the state government was kept in the dark about the unfolding crisis. He said that while around 100 Nepali students remain on campus, nearly 800 others have left for Nepal.

Arrests and Legal Action

Including Advik, the Odisha Police have made six arrests in connection with both the student’s death and the violence against protesters. Among those detained are three senior university officials-Director General (HR) Sibananda Mishra, Director (Administration) Pratap Kumar Chamupaty, and Director of Hostels Sudhir Kumar Rath. Two security guards, Jogendra Behera and Ramakanta Nayak, were also arrested for their role in the violent crackdown.

Two separate cases have been filed. The first concerns the suicide and was registered based on a complaint from Prakriti’s cousin. The second was initiated by the police, following viral videos of security personnel assaulting students.

Apologies and Diplomatic Fallout

One KIIT faculty member, Manjusha Pandey, was heard claiming in the viral videos that KIIT “feeds and educates over 40,000 students for free,” an amount she suggested was equivalent to Nepal’s national budget. Another staff member, Jayanti Nath, was recorded shouting similar statements.

Both Ms Pandey and Ms Nath later issued public apologies. “My statements were made in the heat of the moment,” Ms Pandey said in a video message. “If my words hurt the sentiments of any Nepali students or people of Nepal, I sincerely apologise.”

@MEAIndia@PM_nepal_@DrSJaishankar@PMOIndia@MofaNepal@IndiaInNepal@EONIndia pic.twitter.com/zPsRL0wNm8

— Jayanti Nath (@JayantiNath6) February 18, 2025

KIIT also issued an apology and removed two of its officials from service, though it did not name them. The institute urged Nepali students to return to their hostels and resume their studies.

The Nepalese government, however, has not taken the issue lightly. In a strongly worded statement, it warned that it might suspend issuing No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for students seeking admission to universities in Odisha if the matter was not resolved in a “justifiable and legal way.”

Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli personally intervened, stating that his government was handling the matter through diplomatic channels. “Our Embassy in New Delhi has dispatched officers to counsel affected students,” he announced.

The Nepalese Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the incident “unimaginable” and assured that it was in continuous contact with the Indian government and KIIT authorities. The Indian Embassy in Kathmandu also pledged to ensure the safety of Nepali students in India.

Political Fallout In Odisha

The controversy quickly turned into a political flashpoint in Odisha. The Congress party has demanded a judicial inquiry, while the ruling BJP – which came to power in Odisha for the first time in history after their shock win over the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD in the Assembly elections last year –  has called for the arrest of KIIT founder Achyuta Samanta. The BJD, in turn, has blamed the incident on deteriorating law and order under the BJP-led state government.

The issue was also raised in the Odisha Assembly, with MLAs across party lines condemning the incident. “The developments at KIIT have brought a bad name to the state, and this cannot be tolerated,” a Congress MLA said during the debate.

Bhubaneswar:

Tension erupted on the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) campus in Odisha yesterday after a third-year student from Nepal was found dead in her hostel room. BTech student Prakristi Lamsal died by suicide, authorities said. Dozens of Nepali students assembled last night and staged a protest, after which they claimed they were evicted from the campus.

Several posts have surfaced on social media claiming that Lamsal was being harassed by her ex-boyfriend. Her cousin too filed a complaint saying she was being blackmailed by a male student at the university, which led her to hang herself.

A statement issued by the KIIT also made similar claims.

“A Nepali student studying in the third year of B-Tech committed suicide in the hostel yesterday. It is suspected that the student was in a love affair with another student studying at KIIT. It is suspected that the student may have committed suicide due to some reason,” said the statement.

The police have lodged a case on the allegation that a male student abated her suicide, said Pinak Mishra, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Bhubaneswar.

“The accused student is in police custody and subjected to interrogation. The police have seized the mobile phone, laptop, and other gadgets of the deceased woman. We are undertaking a scientific investigation into the matter,” he said.

The senior official also appealed to the students to maintain peace after their protests sparked tension on the campus last night. Authorities deployed two platoons of police personnel to maintain law and order. In view of the situation, the university said it asked the students from Nepal to go back home, after which the Nepali students were packed in two buses and dropped at the Cuttack Railway Station this morning.

“The University is closed Sine Die for all the International students from Nepal. They are hereby directed to vacate the university campus immediately today on 17th February, 2025,” read a notice shared on social media.

Anil Prasad Yadav, a student from Nepal, told reporters at the railway station they were pushed out of the hostel.

#WATCH | Rajan Gupta from Nepal says, “…We were protesting for the (deceased) girl. We don’t know what their intentions are but we were forcibly made to vacate the hostel. There is no fixed schedule of the train, I have no money. We have not even had food. We are helpless…We… pic.twitter.com/bj2TLUWWIx

— ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2025

“We went to the International Office and sat overnight on a dharna, but we were sent back. We were finally asked to pack up and leave within an hour. We don’t know how we will go. We did not have food. We are trying to get a ticket,” he told news agency ANI.

Another student, Rajan Gupta, said they were protesting for the student who had died, but they were forcibly made to vacate the hostel. “The staff members came and asked us to vacate. They even hit those who were not packing quickly,” he said.

Taking note of the incident, Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said his government is working on this issue through diplomatic channels and is in touch with the authorities.

On the law-and-order situation, a senior cop said police personnel have been deployed both inside and outside the campus to maintain law and order. A university official said the cops have also sealed the dead student’s room and kept her body in the mortuary to hand over to her parents.

The KIIT said the campus situation is now calm.

Meanwhile, students from other states have claimed that the university’s private security guards were not allowing them to leave the hostel. A video has also gone viral showing the students clashing with the guards, but it could not be verified. University officials have also refused to comment on this allegation.

Bhubaneswar:

A 65-year-old woman was on Saturday found to have been living with the corpses of three of her family members for at least two days in Odisha’s Dhenkanal district, a police officer said.

Decomposed bodies of the three – the woman’s husband, her daughter and grandson – were found hanging in their residence at Chaulia Khamar village under Dhenkanal Sadar police station limits.

The inspector in charge of the police station, Purna Chandra Rout, said that the woman, Pushpanjali Das, on Saturday left the house and went to her son’s place in Dhenkanal town and told him that three were dead.

Following this, her son Prasanna Kumar Das called up someone in the village, who informed him that some stench was coming from the house and that he should come and check.

For some reason, Prasanna has been staying away from his father’s house for around 30 years.

After going to the village with his mother, Prasanna found his father Shankarshan (70) hanging in one room, while his 45-year-old sister Subarna and her son Santosh (18) were also hanging in another.

It is suspected that the three died at least two days ago.

The police officer said the house was located on a secluded side of the village and the family members did not mingle with others.

The bodies were sent for post-mortem examination to ascertain whether the three died by suicide or homicide, he said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Jajpur:

A class 4 student died after falling off a swing on the school premises in Odisha’s Jajpur district on Saturday, police said.

The deceased boy was identified as Soumyaranjan Sahu of Bagapatia Upper Primary school under Danagadi block.

The 10-year-old boy was playing on a swing with some of his friends during school hours when he suddenly fell and sustained critical injuries. He was rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival, police said.

Soumyaranjan’s family and locals blamed carelessness of the teachers for his death. They allegedly detained the teachers after the incident and demanded strict action against them, police added.

Bagapatia Upper Primary School has 72 students and five teachers including the headmaster, official sources said.

“This is an unfortunate incident. We cannot compensate for the irreparable loss. However, we will certainly advise all the schools in the block to take necessary precautions to avoid such accidents during school hours,” said Subhranshu Puhan, block education officer of Dangdi.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Bhubaneshwar:

Odisha Police on Monday said it arrested a couple on charges of defrauding people by impersonating themselves as the daughter and son-in-law of PK Mishra, the principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The couple, identified as Hansita Abhilipsa (38) and her accomplice Anil Kumar Mohanty, believed to be her husband, were accused of cheating people by claiming that they have influential connections, police added.

“They were arrested on Sunday and booked under Sections 329(3), 319(2), 318(4), and 3(5) of the BNS. They claimed to be the daughter and son-in-law of PM’s principal secretary Dr. PK Mishra,” Swaraj Debata, Additional DCP Zone 6 in Bhubaneswar, said.

Police recovered several photographs from the couple’s residence, showing them with high-profile people, including chief secretary. The duo allegedly swindled rich businessmen, builders, mining operators, and other influential people in Bhubaneswar.

Officials said the couple digitally manipulated the photographs with influential officials and used these doctored images to approach victims, falsely promising to help them get their tenders passed.

Hansita is a resident of Kandhamal district, while Mohanty is a small-time businessman who owns an infrastructure firm.

The arrests were made following a complaint by a mine owner.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Balasore:

A couple in Odisha’s Balasore district allegedly sold their newborn boy to a childless couple in neighbouring Mayurbhanj district, police said on Sunday.

The matter came to light when locals could not find the nine-day-old baby in the home of Dharmu Behera and his wife Shantilata in Hadamouda village under the Basta Police Station limits, an officer said.

On December 19, Shantilata gave birth to a baby boy at Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College and Hospital at Baripada and she was discharged three days later.

When villagers did not find the newborn in their home, they suspected that the couple sold the baby through a middleman due to “poverty”, the officer said.

Based on a complaint, a joint investigation was initiated by the police and the Child Welfare Committee, Mayurbhanj.

The baby was rescued on Saturday from the possession of a childless couple in Manicha village under the Sainkola block in Mayurbhanj district, he said.

Both Shantilata and the family from where the baby was rescued denied the allegation of any sale or purchase of the newborn.

Shantilata and Dharmu claimed to have donated the baby to the childless couple.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Bhubaneswar:

More than 10,300 people lost their lives due to drowning, snakebites and natural disasters in Odisha over the past three years, revenue and disaster management minister Suresh Pujari informed the assembly on Thursday.

In a statement, Pujari said 10,302 lives were lost and property worth Rs 2,301.51 crore was damaged due to floods, lightnings, snakebites, fire incidents and drowning between 2021-22 and 2023-24.

According to the minister, 3,351 people were killed in 2021-22, followed by 3,649 deaths in 2022-23, and 3,302 fatalities in 2023-24.

While drowning claimed 5,534 lives, 3,356 died due to snakebites and 874 fatalities were reported because of lightning.

In addition, 429 died from fire incidents, 46 from heatwaves, and 28 from boat capsizes, he said.

The state also reported six deaths due to landslides and 26 due to floods and heavy rainfall, the minister said while replying to a query by BJD legislator Souvic Biswal.

Pujari further noted that four cyclones-Yaas, Gulab, Jawad, and Michaung-hit the state in the last three years. While Cyclone Yaas claimed three lives, no casualties were reported from the other three.

To mitigate the impact of such disasters, Pujari outlined several initiatives by the state government. These include the preparation of disaster management action plans by all government departments and districts, strengthened early warning systems, and the establishment of 24×7 control rooms at both the district and state levels.

For cyclone tracking, Doppler radars have been installed at Paradip and Gopalpur. Additionally, 26 coastal villages across six districts have been declared Tsunami Ready under the Indian Ocean Tsunami Ready Programme. The government has also set up 122 alert siren towers across district headquarters and 22 coastal blocks in six districts under the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project, he added.

The government also uses the Early Warning Dissemination System (EWDS), mass messaging, siren towers, digital mobile radios, and the Sachet platform to inform the public about upcoming disasters, the minister said.

Furthermore, 844 multipurpose cyclone shelters have been built across 25 districts, and 20 Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) units have been established in 15 districts. An NDRF unit is stationed at Munduli (Cuttack), and additional fire service personnel are deployed during natural disasters, Pujari added.

In 2015, the Odisha government had declared heatwave, lightning, boat capsize, tornado, heavy rain, drowning, snakebite and fire as state specific disasters, providing assistance to victims from the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Balasore:

A 40-year-old man was sentenced to 20 years in jail by a special court in Odisha’s Balasore district on Saturday for raping a five-year-old girl when she was going to a shop near her house to buy soap.

The incident happened on May 3 when the girl’s mother sent her to a nearby shop. On the way, the man got hold of her, and promising her some snacks, took her to a secluded place where he raped her, according to the prosecution.

Besides sentencing him to 20 years in jail, the special POCSO court of Judge Ranjan Kumar Sutar also imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on him.

The man was convicted under IPC section 376 (AB) which deals with rape on a woman under 12 years, and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, said Special Public Prosecutor Pranab Kumar Panda.

The court directed the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) to pay a compensation of Rs 4 lakhs to the survivor.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Bhubaneswar:

In a shocking incident, a 4-year-old girl was rescued by Badagada police in Odisha’s Bhubaneswar after being sold by her parents for Rs 40,000. The accused couple, who are from Bihar, along with four other individuals involved, have been arrested, according to the police.

According to reports, the accused couple was experiencing financial issues and sold their four-year-old child to another childless couple in Pipili. According to the Badagada police station in charge, Trupti Ranjan Nayak, the duo was working as daily labourers under the Badagada policy limits.

After the incident came to light, Badagada police rescued the child and initiated an investigation. A total of six people including the mediators and both parents of the child have been arrested.

Badagada Police Station IIC, Trupti Ranjan Nayak said on Wednesday, “Today morning we received information from one Sarthak Mahadik that a Bihar couple residing in his home, have sold their four-year-old daughter. We have registered a case… The girl has been rescued from a village in the Pipli area. Six people have been detained and interrogation is going on.”

The parents of the child have confessed to selling their child and have also implicated two intermediaries from the Badagada area, who allegedly helped facilitate the illegal transaction.

Further investigation into the matter is underway.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Hyderabad:

A 25-year-old woman from Odisha, who had come to Hyderabad for surrogacy, died under mysterious circumstances after reportedly “falling” from a residential apartment, police said on Wednesday.

The woman’s husband alleged that she was sexually harassed by a 54-year-old businessman who had hired her for surrogacy, leading her to take her own life on the night of November 25-26.

Raidurgam police have booked the businessman for abetment of suicide under relevant sections of the BNS and are investigating the allegations.

According to police, the woman had been staying in a room in the businessman’s flat for the past month, while her husband was housed in a separate room.

The businessman resides in the flat with his wife and other family members, and the surrogacy procedure was scheduled to begin next month, police said.

Officials found saris tied to an iron grill on the balcony of the woman’s room, extending from the ninth floor to the seventh floor.

Police suspect she may have attempted to climb down to escape but are also examining whether she accidentally fell or died by suicide. The investigation is underway.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)