Bhubaneswar: In a rare display of unity, eight opposition political parties in Odisha came together on Wednesday morning to jointly call for a statewide bandh on July 17, urging people from all walks of life to participate in what they described as a “people’s bandh” against misgovernance and in defence of women’s dignity and safety.
The announcement was made at a joint press conference held at Congress Bhawan in Bhubaneswar, where leaders of the Congress, CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML)-Liberation, Forward Bloc, NCP, Samajwadi Party, and RJD appealed to the citizens of Odisha—including trade unions, farmers’ groups, women’s organizations, students, and youth—to make the bandh a success. The bandh is being held in the backdrop of the tragic death of a female B.Ed student from Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in Balasore, who died by suicide after allegedly being sexually harassed and denied justice.
The opposition parties have demanded the resignation of the Higher Education Minister, the Balasore MP, and the Balasore Sadar MLA, and have called for a judicial inquiry into the incident. They have also sought immediate action against the District Magistrate and the Superintendent of Police of Balasore, holding them accountable for administrative failure.
While essential services such as ambulances and emergency medical treatment will be exempt, the opposition has appealed for a complete shutdown of markets, transport services, educational institutions, government offices, courts, banks, insurance sectors, and nationalized enterprises. They insisted the bandh would be peaceful and requested the cooperation of the public, including those in the capital city of Bhubaneswar.
During the press conference, the opposition leaders also condemned the recent police action on BJD protesters at Lower PMG, accusing the government of unleashing rubber bullets, tear gas, water cannons, and lathi charges against citizens exercising their democratic rights. They said such measures only highlighted the deteriorating law and order situation in Odisha and alleged that the state was being run through coercion rather than governance.
Terming the Majhi-led BJP government a complete failure, the opposition leaders asserted that it had lost the moral right to govern. They declared that issue-based protests would continue across the state until justice is delivered in the Balasore case and a secure environment for women is restored.
The press conference was addressed by Congress State President Bhakta Charan Das, Congress Legislative Party Leader Ramachandra Kadam, former PCC chief Jayadev Jena, senior MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati, CPI State Secretary Ashish Kanungo, CPI(M) State Secretary Suresh Chandra Panigrahi, CPI(ML)-Liberation State Secretary Yudhisthir Mahapatra, Forward Bloc State General Secretary Jyotiranjan Mahapatra, NCP State President Bikram Swain, SP State General Secretary Pratap Barik, and RJD State General Secretary Hemant Kumar.
