ODISHA, May 8: Four Indian students have been verbally accused of consistently harassing Nepali student Prisha Shah before her suspicious death at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) University in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
Shah’s father, Shyam Shah, lodged a verbal complaint with Bhubaneswar police, naming the students allegedly involved in the harassment. However, Bhubaneswar Police Commissioner Dr Sureshdev Dutta Singh said that the police have only recorded statements from the family and declined to provide further details, citing the ongoing investigation.
According to Prisha’s family, the harassment occurred both in the classroom and hostel. Despite informing the university and police authorities, no action was reportedly taken. **
Probe Prisha's Death Thoroughly
One family member alleged that frequent arguments occurred in class and during meals, mainly centered around academic issues and teasing by fellow students.
Police have interrogated ten students so far. Two Indian roommates of Shah are currently on leave and will be questioned upon their return. Forensic reports of Shah’s laptop and mobile phone are still pending. The postmortem report has not shown any suspicious findings, according to Bhubaneswar police, who said digital data would assist further investigation.
Prisha Shah, a student from Parsa district in Nepal, was found hanging in room number 111 of the KIIT hostel on May 1, just three months after another Nepali student, Prakriti Lamsal from Rupandehi, died at the same university.
KIIT hosts a large number of international students including those from Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bangladesh, France, Somalia and Syria.
The KIIT and Bhubaneswar police have initiated counseling programs for foreign students in response to the recent incidents.
**Family members have accused four students of harrassing late Prisha. We have withheld their names as investigation is still underway. --Editor
