Cuttack: The Orissa High Court has issued a slew of directions to bolster safety and security at National Law University Odisha (NLUO) near Naraj in Cuttack, while expressing concern over repeated “disturbing incidents” in and around the campus.
A single-judge bench of Justice Sanjeeb Kumar Panigrahi stressed the responsibility of university administrations and police in ensuring a safe and congenial academic atmosphere around the campus, which is located at a secluded area on the outskirts of the city. “Institutions of higher learning must remain spaces of safety, dignity, and intellectual freedom. Any trend of lawlessness, vigilantism, or disorder in and around the campus environment not only jeopardizes students’ welfare but also undermines the institutional ethos,” the court said.
Justice Panigrahi made these observations while quashing criminal proceedings, involving allegations of kidnapping and misconduct against NLUO students, after the involved parties informed the court that they had reached an amicable settlement.
In September 2023, a fourth-year student of NLUO filed a police complaint alleging that three persons came in a car and dragged him and a friend into the vehicle while they were returning to the campus and question them about use of alcohol and psychotropic substances, abused them with filthy language, and passed sexually vulgar comments about their female friends.
Expressing concern over recurring incidents of intimidation or unlawful interference with students in and around the campus, the court on February 12 issued 14-point guidelines, which include establishment of a police outpost within the NLUO campus, with 24×7 deployment of police personnel, increased police patrolling, especially during late evening hours, and setting up an outpost near the campus manned by an officer not below the rank of sub-inspector. The institute has also been asked to augment campus security by deploying adequate security personnel at entry and exit gates, installing functional CCTV cameras at strategic locations, and improved lighting in vulnerable areas. It also emphasised on stricter entry-point checks of bags and vehicles to prevent contraband, including alcohol and narcotic substances, among others.
