Nepali Envoy Urges Students To Resume Studies: ‘Pleased With Indian Govt Actions In KIIT Suicide Case’

Last Updated:February 19, 2025, 12:16 IST

A Nepali student died in a hostel room on Sunday afternoon, leading to massive protests on the campus. The Nepali Ambassador to India has expressed satisfaction over the ongoing investigation.

KIIT Nepali Student Suicide Case (PTI Image)

Amid the KIIT student suicide row, the Nepali Ambassador to India, Shankar Sharma on Wednesday urged the students of his country to return to the university and resume studies, stating that the educational institution has assured full cooperation.

This comes after a 20-year-old Nepali student at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology allegedly died by suicide in the hostel on Sunday afternoon. The incident ignited protests from the students on campus.

Speaking exclusively to CNN-News18, the Nepalese Ambassador expressed pleasure over the steps taken by the Ministry of External Affairs and the Odisha government to deal with the situation.

“We are pleased with the steps taken by the Ministry of External Affairs and the government of Odisha. We want Nepali students to return. Many of them have already returned now," he said.

A third-year B Tech (Computer Science) student, Prakriti Lamsal, was found dead in her hostel room. The protesting students alleged that another student had harassed her. As protests erupted, the students were ordered to vacate the hostel. Three directors and two security guards were arrested for allegedly assaulting the Nepali students while evicting them. They were later granted bail.

The Ambassador appealed to the Nepali as well as Indian students to treat each other like brothers.

“Staff at the institute has been suspended. My appeal is that Indian students and Nepali students should treat each other like brothers. There are 20,000 Nepali students in India in various institutes," he said.

Noting that India and Nepal share strong cultural ties, Sharma said that the Odisha government has committed to conducting a fair investigation into the death of the student, as part of which the government has constituted a committee to probe the incident.

“This was a very unfortunate incident. I request Nepali students to come back and resume studies because the government and the University will fully cooperate not only in areas of safety but will offer counselling," he said.

“Students spend huge money to study in India they should also be treated like brothers. Everybody supported us very promptly and quickly here in India," the Ambassador noted.

On Tuesday, the Odisha government constituted a fact-finding committee to probe the circumstances around the death of the Nepali student and to ascertain why the institute issued letters of suspension to the students seeking justice for the deceased.

The committee will also investigate why the institute did not inform the Odisha government about its actions against Nepali students.

A 21-year-old KIIT student was arrested on charges of abetting suicide. Five other persons, including three directors, were charged with allegedly assaulting the protesting students.

News world Nepali Envoy Urges Students To Resume Studies: ‘Pleased With Indian Govt Actions In KIIT Suicide Case’