Bhubaneswar: The president of the Odisha unit of the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), Udit Pradhan, has been arrested by Mancheswar police on charges of raping a 19-year-old female engineering student after allegedly spiking her drink with intoxicants.
NSUI is the student wing of the Indian National Congress.
According to police sources, Pradhan was taken into custody late on Sunday night and will be produced before a court on Monday. The arrest followed a complaint lodged by the survivor, detailing the events that took place on March 18.
As per the FIR, the victim, her female friend, and a male classmate had gone to Master Canteen Square in Bhubaneswar, where they met Udit Pradhan through the friend. The group later travelled in Pradhan’s vehicle to a hotel in the Nayapalli area.
At the hotel, alcohol was consumed by some members of the group, though the victim reportedly declined. She was instead offered a soft drink by Pradhan, which, according to her statement, had been laced with sedatives.
Soon after consuming the drink, the victim began to feel dizzy and requested to be taken home. However, her request was allegedly denied, and she soon lost consciousness. Upon regaining awareness, she found that she had been sexually assaulted. She also claimed that Pradhan threatened her with dire consequences if she revealed the incident or approached the authorities.
Despite the delay in filing a complaint, police have registered a case and launched a full-scale investigation due to the serious nature of the allegations. Officials said further inquiries are ongoing, and more details will be made public as the probe advances.
The arrest comes shortly after a similar case in West Bengal, where Trinamool Congress student leader Monojit Mishra was detained in connection with the alleged gang rape of a female student at South Calcutta Law College on 25 June. The woman accused two senior students and a former student of assaulting her inside the guard’s room of the college.