The Crime Branch of Odisha Police filed a charge sheet against the accused persons over the death by self-immolation of a 20-year-old female student of Balasore's FM (Autonomous) College.
The state police's Crime Against Women and Children Wing (CAWCW) investigating officer Iman Kalyani Nayak submitted a 504-page charge sheet, containing statements of 120 witnesses, at the court of sub-divisional judicial magistrate (SDJM), Balasore, a senior official said.
The police have also gathered key digital evidence from a range of gadgets.
A police official stated that due to the ongoing collection of further evidence and the involvement of multiple people, the case remains open.
The Integrated B.Ed student set herself on fire on 12 July while calling for justice over alleged sexual harassment by her head of department. She later passed away on 14 July while receiving treatment at AIIMS Bhubaneswar, an event that led to widespread outrage across the country.
The police arrested assistant professor Samira Kumar Sahoo on 12 July and the then-principal, Dillip Ghose, on 14 July, both on charges of abetting suicide. The Crime Branch took over the investigation from the local police after the student's death.
On 3 August, the Crime Branch arrested Subhra Sambit Nayak, the state joint secretary of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), and Jyotiprakash Biswal, a student at the college who was injured while trying to save the girl. Both were also accused of abetting suicide, as they had filmed the student setting herself alight. The pair are further accused of conspiring and inciting the victim to immolate herself.
The investigation is ongoing, and the case has been kept open, the official added.
Also read: Skeleton of missing Odisha woman found after 8 months; 1 arrested
Follow us
