The death presumed by the suicide of a Nepalese student Prakriti Lamsal in India on February 16 caused angry demonstrations by Nepalese students in India and Nepal.
Lamsal studied at the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) in the eastern state of Odisha in India. According to the police, Lamsal ended his life in his inn room following a suspected relationship with a male student, Advik Srivastava. The latter would have mistreated and threatened her. According to the friends of Lamsal, she had complained to the authorities of Kiit but no measure was taken. During a press meeting in Kathmandu, the friends of Lamsal said they saw injuries on her body and that she was poisoned.
After the death of Lamsal, the students, mainly of Nepalese origin, went down to the street demanding the arrest of Srivastava for having abused the woman, which led to her suicide.
The initial response from the management of Kiit was insensitive and heavy. He ordered Nepalese students to “leave the university campus” immediately. Police, which was deployed “to restore the law and order” inside the campus and outside, would have defeated some Protestant students. The addition of fuel to the fire was a video clip of a member of the inn staff mocking Nepalese students, saying that the KIIT’s budget was “equivalent to the Budget of Nepal”.
The death of a Nepalese student, the video clip and the order of the KIIT to the students to leave immediately drawn the attention of the Nepalese social media and the consumer media. Street demonstrations broke out in Nepal and questions were raised in Parliament, which prompted the Nepalese government to act quickly.
“Our embassy in New Delhi sent two officers to advise Nepalese students affected in Odisha. In addition, arrangements have been made to make sure they have the opportunity to stay in their inn or go home, depending on their preference, “said Prime Minister Kp Sharma Oli.
The officials of the Nepalese Embassy in New Delhi quickly entered the KIIT administration and held people informed of their efforts. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Arzu Rana Deuba, also updated people on developments.
On the Indian side too, there was a rapid and sensitive action at different levels. “We are deeply saddened by the tragic death of the Nepalese student. We transmit our sincere condolences, “said Randir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) [to the] The security, security and well-being of all international students in the country. The MEA was in constant contact with the Odisha government, the KIIT administration, as well as the Nepalese authorities, he said. In Nepal, the Indian Embassy of Kathmandu quickly informed the Nepalese public of the incident in the Nepalese language.
Meanwhile, the chief minister of Odisha Mohan Charan Maran acted with eagerness. He spoke to managers of the Nepalese embassy, announced a “committee for the search for high -level facts”, summoned the founder of Kit Achyuta Samanta “on student troubles” and urged students to return to campus .
Srivastava was arrested on Monday. The arrest, a key demand from the students, was used to cool temperatures and reduce the heat of their angry manifestations.
As for the management of the KIIT, following massive pressures from the public and the authorities, he apologized and expelled two of his employees to poorly manage the problem. He also announced a scholarship program on behalf of Lamsal. However, many students hesitate to return to university.
The suicide presumed by a Nepalese student in India and the management of the fist kiit on the incident could quickly transform into another Indian-born crisis. This could have contributed to an increase in anti-Indian feeling in the Himalayan country. A timely and sensitive intervention on the part of the governments of the two countries prevented that this happens.