Overview

• The teenager succumbed on August 2 at AIIMS Delhi after suffering over 75% burns in an alleged July 19 attack in Puri district.
• Odisha Police say their investigation has reached its final stage and cite a magistrate-recorded statement in which the victim allegedly admitted self-infliction.
• The mother’s FIR and eyewitness accounts described a kidnapping and burning by three bike-borne assailants near the Bhargavi riverbank.
• No arrests have been made and police continue searching for suspects even as opposition figures criticize the probe and press for accountability.
• The case has intensified scrutiny of gender-based violence in Odisha after a recent student self-immolation and renewed calls for stronger forensic and victim support measures.