Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Tuesday announced ex gratia of Rs 20 lakh for the family of the college student who died by setting herself on fire over alleged inaction on her sexual harassment complaint.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the student's death, and said the daughters of the country are burning and dying while the PM is sitting silent.
Gandhi said the country does not want the PM's silence, it wants answers.
Eight opposition parties, led by the Congress, also called an Odisha bandh on July 17.
State Congress president Bhakta Charan Das said the bandh is being supported by eight parties, including the Left.
He claimed the incident, which happened at the Fakir Mohan (Autonomous) College in Balasore, showed that the state government has failed to protect women.
"She brought petrol, and everyone watched silently. No one acted," he said, attacking the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
Das said the bandh has been called to seek justice for the deceased student.
The second-year B.Ed student died on Monday night at AIIMS-Bhubaneswar after fighting for her life for three days.
She set herself on fire on the campus on Saturday over alleged inaction against a professor who allegedly sexually harassed her. She had suffered 95 per cent burns.
The principal and the HoD of the Education Department of the college have been arrested in the case.
In a post in Hindi on X, Gandhi said the death of a daughter fighting for justice in Odisha is a 'direct murder by the BJP system'.
That brave student raised her voice against sexual exploitation -- but instead of justice, she was threatened, harassed and humiliated repeatedly, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
Those who were supposed to protect her, kept oppressing her, Gandhi said.
'Like every time, the BJP system kept protecting the accused -- and forced an innocent daughter to set herself on fire,' he said.
'This is not suicide, it is an organised murder by the system,' Gandhi alleged.
'Modi ji, be it Odisha or Manipur -- the daughters of the country are burning, breaking down, dying. And you? Are sitting silent. The country does not want your silence, it wants answers,' the former Congress president said.
The daughters of India want security and justice, Gandhi added.
In Bhubaneswar, CM Majhi directed officers concerned to conduct a proper investigation into the incident so that all guilty are punished in accordance with the law, according to a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO).
Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati also expressed grief over the death of the student.
'Shattered to learn of the untimely loss of a young student from Fakir Mohan Autonomous College. Her passing is not just a tragedy it is a stark reminder of the urgent need to safeguard our campuses,' he said in a post on X.
'The law will take its toughest course. Those responsible will face uncompromising punishment. My heart goes out to the grieving family. May they find strength in this hour of unbearable pain,' he added.
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