Odisha campus horror: Wanted her to come home in a carcade, she came in a hearse, says brother; timeline of Balasore sexual harassment case

BHUBANESWAR: She was a fighter who would not give up easily, reminisced family members and friends of the 20-year-old student, who died late on Monday after battling for nearly 60 hours with more than 90% burns that she had sustained after setting herself on fire over alleged sexual harassment at the hands of a faculty member.

The second-year integrated BEd student wanted to become a politician, her brother said. "I lost a diamond today. From her aura and courageous attitude, I knew that she would make a name in politics. She was so strong that she would not bow down before anybody. I always wanted her to come home in a carcade, but unfortunately, she came in a hearse," lamented the girl's 28-year-old elder brother.He said his sister trained others in self-defence.

A meritorious student, she also received training to deal with disaster management. "She was a multi-talented person. She won the best actress award in her college last year. She wrote poems and was a good singer as well. She was good at acting and painting. She was also interested in social service," said the brother, who works in a private company in Balasore.The brother said he will fight the case till the end to give justice to his deceased sister, a cry echoed by the parents.

The girl's mother, a home-maker, has been keeping unwell for the last two months. Her father is a clerk in a college. "I have seen her act in college. She was so good, we could not stop clapping. I could not believe it when I heard that she had set herself ablaze in front of the college," said her batchmate.Another friend said the girl had approached everybody for help, but college authorities and the police did not help her. He alleged that the head of the department and principal of the college were intimidating her to withdraw the complaint."She requested college authorities to take action against the department head for sexually harassing her. She also lodged a complaint with the local police, but they did not help her either," said the girl's mother.