Police arrested assistant professor Samir Kumar Sahu, who heads the education department in Fakir Mohan autonomous college, hours after the girl student attempted to die by suicide inside the college campus, protesting official inaction on her complaint of sexual harassment. The girl, who had lodged a complaint with the internal complaints committee of the college on July 1, is battling for her life in AIIMS Bhubaneswar with 90 % burns. Two of her male friends, who tried to save her, are also being treated with burn injuries.

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The girl in her grievance to the internal complaints committee had alleged that Sahu had been asking her for “favours” and had also threatened her to destroy her academic career if she did not oblige. Though she was assured that action would be taken in seven days, nothing happened. She also lodged a complaint with local police in the issue.

On Saturday, the student and her classmates began a protest outside the college gate demanding action. However, she suddenly got up, ran to an area close to the principal’s office, and attempted to die by suicide. A CCTV grab showed her on fire, running into a corridor of the college. A man tried to help her, but retreated after his T-shirt caught fire. The student walked out of the corridor and other people could be seen trying to extinguish the fire.

The college principal, Dilip Ghosh was also suspended by the higher education department over his failure in taking action in the case. An acquaintance of the girl student said though the college had constituted an internal committee to investigate the allegations, it failed to deliver any conclusive outcome. The girl had also approached Balasore member of Parliament (MP) Pratap Sarangi over the issue, but no action was taken. The principal, however, stated that no evidence of sexual exploitation was found by the internal committee.

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“She had told us that the HOD threatened her repeatedly and said her career would be ruined if she didn’t comply,” said one of her friends. “He had repeatedly asked her for undue favours, and this put her in extreme mental agony. The hearing of the internal committee was a sham. It wasn’t a fair investigation. They didn’t allow students to speak. It was designed to protect the teacher and bury the truth,” another classmate alleged. Two teachers have been named by students, including Sahoo, as being responsible for persistent harassment.

One of her friends said they had gathered in the college when she came out from behind, covered in flames. “We did not know where she was during that period, but we know she had met HOD Sahoo today,” the student alleged.

Odisha higher education minister Suryabanshi Suraj said considering the sensitivity of the case, a high-level inquiry committee has been constituted. “Further action will be taken based on the committee’s report,” he said.

In February this year, a 20-year-old Nepalese girl student in Bhubaneswar’s KIIT University had died by suicide over sexual harassment by a fellow student. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), which probed the incident, said KIIT university did not form an internal complaint committee as per POSH Act to investigate the incident and instead tried to bury the issue.