‘Will Ensure Justice’: Rahul Gandhi To Father Of Odisha Girl Who Died By Self-Immolation

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday morning spoke with the father of the deceased 20-year-old girl from Odisha, who immolated herself because of alleged sexual harassment by her teacher, and ensured justice for the victim’s family.

Labelling the action leading to self-immolation by the victim as a “wound to the entire society”, he assured that the Congress party stand with the family.

“Spoke with the father of the brave daughter who lost her life in the fight for justice in Balasore, Odisha. In his voice, I felt his daughter’s pain, dreams, and struggle. Assured him that the Congress Party and I stand with them at every step. What happened is not only inhuman and shameful but a wound to the entire society,” Gandhi, who is the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha, posted on X.

“We will ensure in every way that the victim’s family receives full justice,” he added.

The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Wednesday took to the streets, calling for ‘Balasore Bandh’ in protest against the Odisha government after a 20-year-old girl self-immolated herself because of alleged sexual harassment by her teacher.

The BJD workers burned tyres on the roads in Balasore, expressing anger over the “inaction” of the government that led the girl to self-immolate herself in protest against the alleged sexual harassment.

A BJD worker demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj.

“People in large numbers are joining our protest…The victim should get justice. The Chief Minister and the state Health Minister should resign…We have called for the Balasore Bandh from 6 am to 2 pm,” he said.

The 20-year-old student set herself on fire after allegedly facing prolonged sexual harassment by her college’s Head of Department. Despite lodging a formal complaint and seeking help from the principal, her pleas were ignored, leading to the tragic incident. The incident occurred at Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College.

Earlier, BJD chief Naveen Patnaik criticised the Odisha government, calling their administration a “failed system” while blaming their inaction for the death of a Balasore college student.

Patnaik said that her death “was not an accident” but the result of a system that “remained silent instead of helping.”

“It is even more disturbing to think how a failed system can take someone’s life. The most painful part is that this was not an accident, but rather the result of a system that remained silent instead of helping. Struggling for justice, the girl ultimately closed her eyes,” Patnaik said in a post on X.

On Monday, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Bhubaneswar confirmed the death of the 20-year-old student from Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in Odisha’s Balasore, who had attempted self-immolation.

The Department of Burn Centre, AIIMS Bhubaneswar, said in a statement that the patient was brought to the casualty on July 12 and was referred from Balasore District Headquarters Hospital to AIIMS Bhubaneswar. (ANI)