Ashutosh Mishra 
Bhubaneswar: The expulsion of seven students of Berhampur’s Parala Maharaja Engineering College (PMEC), a premier government-run technical institute of south Odisha, from their hostels for allegedly cooking and eating beef, has caused ripples in the region.
People from various walks of life, especially intellectuals of Berhampur, the political and cultural nerve centre of Ganjam, one of the largest districts of southern Odisha, appear a bit confused about how the whole thing unfolded. Many feel that the college authorities have gone a bit far in punishing the students, acting under the pressure of Hindutva activists. Five of the seven expelled students are Muslims.
The incident of alleged cooking of beef took place in one of the rooms of Falguni hostel of the government college. The notification expelling the students read, “The dean Students Welfare, Parala Maharaja Engineering College, Berhampur, has expelled the following boarders from the respective halls of residence (HoRs), with the approval of the competent authority, for their involvement in restricted activities in Room No B-23 of Falguni hostel on the night of 11-09-2024, which violated HoR Rules and the Code of Conduct.” One of the expelled students was fined Rs 2,000.
‘Difficult to prove these things’
The issue snowballed into a controversy after Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad activists lodged a complaint with police alleging that the students in question had cooked and consumed beef in their hostel room on the night of September 11. The expulsion took place the next day even though, so far, there has been no statement from the college authorities clarifying if the meat cooked and consumed by the students was indeed beef. The term “restricted activities” is yet to be explained by the authorities.
Sources said when the complaint reached Gopalpur police, a team went to the college and carried out a preliminary inquiry. The inquiry has not established so far that the punished students indeed cooked and consumed beef. Gopalpur police station inspector-in-charge Prasant Mallick said, “It is very difficult to prove these things. We have also not received any confirmation so far from the college.” The next course of action of the police will depend on what the college authorities find in their internal inquiry. The PMEC authorities have, however, not responded to reporters’ queries.
Sources said Bajrang Dal and VHP activists in the area had met the principal Professor Chittaranjan Mohanty and demanded action against the students. The college administration acted swiftly after that. On the face of it, however, the action against the seven students allegedly involved in the incident was taken following a complaint by another group of students in the hostel. The aggrieved students in their complaint addressed to the Dean said, “As a diverse community, we understand the importance of respecting the values and beliefs of all students. This incident (the alleged cooking of beef) has caused unrest and discomfort, leading to a tense atmosphere. I kindly request strict action to be taken against the boarders involved in the incident.”
‘Beef eating almost unheard of here’
Well-known surgeon Dr. Siba Prasad Das, who has made Berhampur his home, said he was surprised by what happened in the Parala Maharaja engineering college. “I have not heard of such an incident before in this city. Nothing of the kind happened even during my student days.”
Hrushikesh Rath, another old resident of Berhampur who is closely associated with the hospitality industry, also found the entire episode painful. “While I am surprised that such a thing has happened, the authorities should not have taken punitive action against the students without solid proof. This city does not have a big Muslim population. So cases of beef eating are almost unheard of here. But sometimes there are incidents of cattle trafficking. The cattle usually come from Khurda area and trafficked through this route. There have also been cases of seizure of meat,” said Rath.
Increasing saffron hold
Last June the local police had seized a container truck full of meat in Ganjam district after local cow vigilantes stopped the vehicle suspecting that it was beef. The driver of the vehicle, who belonged to the Muslim community, was arrested since he did not have any documents related to the consignment in his possession. The police sent samples for testing to find out what kind of meat was in the container but the results of the test remain unknown. Preliminary investigation had revealed that the container was on its way to Andhra Pradesh from Khurda district when activists of a cow protection group stopped the vehicle near Pokadibandh under hamakahandi police station area, suspecting that it was carrying beef. The driver was arrested as he was carrying around 18 tonnes of meat without any papers.
Sources said cow vigilante groups have been quite active in Berhampur and other areas of Ganjam district which lies close to Andhra Pradesh border. There are strong socio-cultural and trade ties between the people of Ganjam and Andhra Pradesh. Telugu, for all practical purposes, is the second language of Ganjam and extremely popular in Berhampur, a high-profile Lok Sabha seat which was won by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the last election.
Political analysts like Sabita Mohanty believe that saffron hold on the area is likely to get stronger in the wake of incidents like the one that took place in Parla Engineering college. “Such incidents need to be handled carefully without any kind of bias. The college authorities should act only on the merits of the case and not succumb to pressure either from politicians or any group owing allegiance to any philosophy.”