Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Saturday spoke to Nepal Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba over phone and assured him that stringent action will be taken against those involved in the alleged harassment of Nepali students at KIIT Deemed University in Bhubaneswar.
“Students from Nepal are like our own children. The state government will ensure their safety and security. We are taking appropriate steps in this regard. The government will make all possible efforts to restore the faith and confidence of Nepali students on Odisha,” the Chief Minister said during the telephonic conversation.
The Chief Minister also held discussions on the issue with two officials of Nepalese embassy – Naveen Raj Adhikari and Sanjiv Sharma – who called on him at Lok Seva Bhawan in Bhubaneswar.
The CM informed the two officials that altogether ten people have been arrested by the Odisha police in connection with the KIIT row so far. He also reiterated the state government’s commitment in ensuring justice to the Nepali students and restoring normalcy at KIIT, said the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) in a statement.
The officials of the Nepalese embassy thanked the Odisha government for its prompt action in connection with the death by suicide of a Nepali girl student at KIIT and subsequent harassment of other students of the neighbouring country at the varsity.
According to the two officials, Nepal has been maintaining a cordial relation with Odisha since long. The ties between Nepal and Odisha will remain intact in future. The parents and guardians of Nepali students studying in KIIT have expressed their satisfaction over the prompt action taken by the Odisha government on the issue, they said.
Notably, a third year BTech girl student from Nepal allegedly died by suicide at KIIT some days ago. The girl student allegedly took the extreme step after she was subjected to harassment by a boy student of the institute.
The varsity authorities had asked students from Nepal to vacate the campus after they launched an agitation seeking justice for the girl students.
Taking the issue seriously, Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli urged the Union as well as Odisha government to take appropriate action in this regard.
The Chief Minister’s phone call to the Nepal Foreign Minister came a day after KIIT founder Achyuta Samanta appeared before the high-level three-member committee formed by the state government to probe the death of a Nepalese student and subsequent harassment of other students from the Himalayan nation in the institute recently. He was questioned for around two hours on Friday.
Seven other senior KIIT officials, including three who have been suspended, were also questioned separately by the panel.
Meanwhile, Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj said that the state government will take action based on the report submitted by the high-level panel,
