Bhubaneswar: The Crime Branch has sought information about two girls in the CCTV footage in which the FM College student was seen running while engulfed in flame, following self-immolation over alleged sexual harassment, on the campus on July 12.
“We have circulated pictures of the students, which were given to us by the Crime Branch, among the staff. A few students are also being interrogated to identify them,” informed FM College Principal in-charge Firoj Kumar Padhi.
A student also told the media that the pictures were shared in the WhatsApp groups of the college by the HoD of the departments on the direction of the principal. “Students were asked to contact the principal’s office with any information on the girls,” he said.
Investigation by the Crime Branch has hit a roadblock due to a critical surveillance gap on the campus. Though she had set herself ablaze minutes after coming out of the principal’s chamber, the incident took place in a blind spot which was not covered by the college’s CCTV network. This complicated efforts to reconstruct the sequence of events and left several questions – source of petrol and matchbox on campus, presence of potential witnesses near the girl, whether the act was self-initiated or involved external influence, and whether anyone stopped her from self-immolating – unanswered.
“Since the two other girls were present at the spot, they probably can reveal what really happened leading to the incident. It would be a great help for the case if they came forward as eyewitnesses,” the student added.
