In a major development, the State Government has removed District Magistrate, SSP and ASP, Nainital, after the self-immolation bid in Ramnagar in which a student leader received serious burn injuries on November 4. The Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam managing director Deepak Rawat has been made the Nainital district magistrate while D Senthil Abudhai is going to be the SSP of the district.
It may be recalled that the student leader tried to immolate himself in Ramnagar, demanding removal of SHO Ramnagar and withdrawal of the cases registered against the students during the student body polls held recently in Ramnagar.
The student leader who has been identified as Rohit Pandey, associated with the NSUI, is presently recuperating in a hospital in Delhi.
The administration had acted on the demand of the agitating student leaders and removed the SHO on November 5. However, the students on the stir were not pacified. They also demanded removal of other officials, including the SSP Nainital. Keeping in view sensitivity of the matter, the ruling Congress sent a team to take stock of the situation on the ground. After getting feedback from all quarters, the State Government has finally removed the aforesaid officials of the Nainital district administration.
Notably, the self- immolation bid had followed a scuffle between the leaders of ABVP and NSUI during the student body elections in Ramnagar a few days ago. Motorbikes of some ABVP activists were burnt at Maldhanchaur in Ramnagar. Subsequently, a case was registered by the Ramnagar police against activists of the rival union for allegedly setting bikes belonging to the ABVP leaders ablaze. Following this, the NSUI student leaders had started demanding removal of SHO and withdrawal of the cases registered against them. Though talks were on to thaw things, the agitating students went ahead, threatening self- implantation at lakhanpur in Ramnagar. One of The students, Rohit, finally, tried to set himself ablaze. He sustained serious burn injuries.