Balasore student death case: Police detain BJD workers, use water cannons to disperse protestors

Apart from Balasore town, BJD workers were holding demonstrations in places like Jaleswar, Basta, Soro, Baliapal and Bhograi since morning

Police on Wednesday (July 16, 2025) used water cannons to disperse BJD workers, protesting against the Odisha government over the death of a college student.

Odisha’s Opposition party, Biju Janata Dal (BJD), took to the streets today, calling for ‘Balasore Bandh’ in protest against the Odisha government after a 20-year-old girl self-immolated because of alleged sexual harassment by her teacher.

The BJD workers burnt tyres on the roads in Balasore, expressing anger over the “inaction” of the government that led the girl to self-immolate herself in protest of the sexual harassment.

A BJD worker also demanded the resignation of the Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj.

Police said they were monitoring the gathering with drones, besides making a heavy deployment of personnel on the roads leading to the secretariat.

Security was also tightened in other government buildings in the city, including Rajiv Bhavan and Kharavela Bhavan, which are located in the vicinity of the Lok Seva Bhavan, police said.

Police Commissioner S Dev Datt Singh was present near the Lok Sabha Bhavan to oversee the security arrangements.

The second-year B.Ed student of Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College died at AIIMS-Bhubaneswar on Monday night after fighting for her life for three days.

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She had set herself on fire on the campus on Saturday (July 12, 2025) over alleged inaction against a professor who allegedly sexually harassed her.

The bandh began at 6 a.m. and would continue till 2 p.m..

Armed with party flags, hundreds of BJD members blocked major roads of the district by burning tyres.

The traffic on the national highway passing through the district is also being regulated in view of the protests, police said.

Apart from Balasore town, BJD workers were holding demonstrations in places like Jaleswar, Basta, Soro, Baliapal and Bhograi since morning.

"People are very angry over the denial of justice to the student who ultimately set herself on fire and died," said BJD leader Debi Prasad Mishra.

"The party will continue the agitation across the state till the BJP government announces a judicial probe into the incident," he said.

The protestors were also demanding the resignation of Higher Education Minister Suryabanshi Suraj and Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, accusing them of failing to provide justice to the 20-year-old student.

The principal of the college and the accused professor have been arrested by the police.

(With inputs from PTI and ANI)