<![CDATA[A high-level team was dispatched to Tripura by the Odisha government on Thursday to assess allegations of torture and harassment by a team of Odiya students and teachers, against local students in Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan University which focuses on education in Sanskrit. Presently there are about 90 students from Odisha enrolled in its Agartala campus in various degree programmes, such as Bachelor in Education (B.Ed). In videos released on social media late Wednesday night, Odiya students in the university wept and pleaded for help. “There is great injustice here and we are totally unsafe”, said a female student featured in the video. “We are B.Ed students and have come to this Central Government affiliated university after passing an entrance examination. But local students harass and thrash us”. “They thrashed both male and female students”, alleged another student in the video, weeping with folded hands. “We may be killed any moment”, said a male student. “We don’t need the B.Ed (degrees) or jobs. We only want security”. Students have appealed to the Odisha government to take them back to their homes. Secretary of Odisha’s Higher Education Department, Bishnupada Sethi, said, “A two-member team, comprising Vice Chancellor of Shri Jagannath Sanskrit Vishwavidyalaya Radha Madhab Dash and Director Higher Education IAS B Parmeswaran, will be visiting Agartala to sort out the matter.” A statement was issued by the Tripura Police saying that they had visited the Odiya students and provided a picket. Tripura Director General of Police Akhil Kumar Shukla said that the concerned officials were asked to look into the issue. Superintendent of Police of West Tripura district Ajit Pratap Singh said that tight security and 24×7 surveillance was provided around Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan since yesterday. “We spoke with the students and they said they are afraid of something. We are still not sure what they are afraid of. But we have ensured proper security”, the official said. SP Singh also said he spoke to the Principal of the institution and the latter assured him that no incident of clash took place inside it. According to sources in the university, the dispute started days after Teachers Day celebrations on campus. The local students had asked the Odiya students to pay Rs 50 per head to contribute for celebrations. Later, an argument broke out after some Odiya students asked how the money was spent. The Odiya students say some of their classmates from Tripura also threatened to file cases of rape and sexual harassment against teachers from Odisha, who tried to resolve the dispute. Prof R.K. Barman, Principal of the Agartala campus, said that the confrontation between Odiya and local students did not lead to any violence. “The local students said that the three faculty members from Odisha were insulting them by making false allegations and calling them thieves. They demanded that the Odiya teachers be sent back. Prof. Barman said that as per a directive from the institution’s head office, the three Odiya teachers had left Agartala for Odisha on Thursday morning. The institution has been declared closed on Thursday and Friday.]]>
