Nepal Govt seeks removal of 'unruly' KIIT staffers, Odisha assures of healthy academic atmosphere

BHUBANESWAR : Despite the Odisha government promising to ensure a "healthy academic atmosphere" at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT), the Nepal government on Saturday insisted that the "unruly" staffers and teachers who allegedly misbehaved with students from the country be removed permanently. Unrest erupted on KIIT campus here after the alleged suicide of a 20-year-old Nepalese student on February 16 and subsequent attack and mistreatment of protesting students from the country and removal from hostels.

The Nepal government's demand was placed before the Odisha government when its Foreign Minister Dr Arzu Rana Deuba spoke to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi over the phone during the day. "... I urged him (CM) to take the initiative to remove the teachers and staff who misbehaved with Nepali students from the college, not temporarily, but permanently," Deuba said in an X post after her talks with Majhi.

During the conversation with Deuba, Majhi said that Nepalese students studying in Odisha are children of the state and they will continue to pursue their education with full respect and dignity, a CMO release said. He also assured Deuba that the state government will ensure strict action against those involved in the alleged suicide of the BTech third year student and subsequent attacks on the Nepalese students. The state government is keeping a close watch on the developments (at KIIT) and all steps will be taken to restore hope and confidence of the students. The Nepal foreign minister thanked Majhi and expressed satisfaction over the steps taken by the state government, the release said.

Deuba, in her X post, said, "Today, I spoke to Odisha Chief Minister Shri Mohan Charan Majhi over the phone regarding the death of Nepali student Prakriti Lamsal at KIIT University in Odisha, India, and the developments that took place in the aftermath. I have urged him to conduct a fair investigation into Lamsal's death and take legal action against the culprits, as well as to ensure a safe environment for Nepali students studying there." "I urged him to take the initiative to remove the teachers and staff who misbehaved with Nepali students from the college, not temporarily, but permanently," Deuba said in the post.

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"Since the college has also formed a committee on this issue and diplomatic staff from the Nepali Embassy in New Delhi are deployed there, I also urged Chief Minister Shri Majhi to coordinate with them. He informed me that the state of Odisha has taken this incident seriously and has started work by forming a high-level investigation committee to bring Prakriti to justice and take action against the culprits," she added. "He also assured me that the Odisha government will provide all necessary support to ensure a safe environment for Nepali students studying there. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Nepali Embassy in New Delhi are working with the necessary coordination in this regard, in contact with the Odisha government, university administration, and Indian security officials," she said.

KIIT student death

Majhi met Nepal Embassy officials Sanjeev Das Sharma and Naveen Raj Adhikari at his chamber at Lok Seva Bhawan and informed them that 10 people have been arrested in connection with the incident of attack on the Nepalese students. "Strict action will be taken against all those involved in the incident. All arrangements have been made by the government to restore the academic atmosphere on KIIT campus," Majhi told the embassy officials. The two embassy officials have been camping in the Odisha capital for the last five days following instructions of Nepal Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli.

Earlier in the day, the opposition Congress leader Bijay Patnaik alleged that Nepalese students faced "racial discrimination" at KIIT. "There was racial discrimination against the Nepalese students at KIIT as only they were evicted from the campus following the unrest," Patnaik, who is also a former chief secretary, told reporters. He said that the private institute's staffers also used insulting words against Nepal, which has close ties with India. Patnaik also questioned why were the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the central government "silent" over the KIIT developments. "The KIIT should immediately be issued a show cause notice asking it to explain why its 'Deemed to be University' status would not be withdrawn for the racial and discriminatory activities," he stated.

Patnaik said foreign students and their parents will henceforth think several times before sending their wards to study in Odisha. He suggested opening of a special cell for foreign students at the Raj Bhavan. Congress activists also held a demonstration in front of KIIT, demanding the immediate arrest of the institute's founder Achyuta Samanta. A large number of youth and student activists of Congress participated in the protest and burnt effigy of Samanta. A scuffle broke out between the security personnel and the agitators when Congress workers attempted to barge into the KIIT campus. Odisha's Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj asserted that the state government was committed to taking stringent action over the KIIT incidents. He said the government is waiting for the findings of a high-level committee and that eight top functionaries of KIIT, including its founder, have deposed before the government panel and recorded their statement on the incidents.