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Police personnel stand guard as mortal remains of the college student, who set herself ablaze following alleged sexual harassment by a professor. (Source: PTI)
Normal life was disrupted across Odisha on Thursday as a 12-hour dawn-to-dusk bandh called by the Congress and its allies brought much of the state to a standstill. The bandh was called to demand justice for a Balasore college student who died after setting herself on fire after authorities allegedly ignored her complaints of sexual harassment by a professor.
Vehicle movement on several highways and major towns came to a grinding halt as Congress workers and other protesters hit the streets. Commuters also faced difficulty in travelling to and from railway stations and airports. Some railway services were also affected as rail roko agitations were also staged at multiple stations across Odisha.
Business establishments were also shut across the state, and thin attendance was recorded at educational institutions and government offices due to restrictions on the movement of vehicles.
In Bhubaneswar, the police detained several Congress leaders, including AICC Odisha in-charge Ajay Kumar Lallu, PCC president Bhakta Charan Das and others as they tried to breach security barricades and march towards the Lok Seva Bhawan.
“Our fight will continue till justice is done in the case. We will intensify the protest across the state. The government has been using the police force, but we will not be intimidated. The Chief Minister has to resign or take action against his minister, MP, MLA, and the Balasore SP,” said the PCC president.
The party had earlier appealed to people from all sections to support the statewide bandh call to pressure the government to take action and fix responsibility.
To deal with the bandh, the state government asked district magistrates and superintendents of police (SPs) to take preventive and precautionary measures to maintain law and order and to alert against any untoward incident.
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Police personnel were deployed in large numbers across Odisha, especially in major towns. The police also deployed high-resolution AI cameras and drones at strategic locations.
Bhubaneswar police commissioner S Dev Datta Singh said there were no reports of violence during the bandh in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
The ruling BJP criticised the Congress, accusing it of politicising the issue of the college student’s death. Bhubaneswar MP and BJP national spokesperson Aparajita Sarangi said the Congress and BJD have no moral right to protest on the issue.
“The Congress should see how it has treated women in Odisha during its rule. We are all aware of the incidents of crime against women during the rule of the BJD. As far as the BJP is concerned, we respect women a lot,” said Sarangi at a press conference.
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