It comes as little surprise that a year after Rohith Vemula committed suicide, Ashwani Ranjan relates his story to the struggle of the Hyderabad University Dalit scholar.
Mr. Ranjan was one of the eight Dalit students suspended by the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University here in September last year on allegations of assaulting a professor and vandalising his vehicle. The students, on their part, alleged that the professor, then proctor, assaulted them with the help of administrative staff and members of the ABVP after they protested attempts to dilute 50% Dalit reservation in the central varsity and hostel admission policy.
“All the allegations that we assaulted him are false. Instead, we were beaten up by the administration supported by ABVP students. There is CCTV footage evidence for it. We were suspended without any notice,” says Ranjan. If the suspension of three students was later revoked, one, Sandeep Shastri, a second-rank Ph.D student, was debarred from admission in future courses, while four are still under suspension despite assurances from the MHRD.
Mr. Ranjan, who hails from the impoverished district of Mau in east U.P., is one of them. The suspension has made it difficult for him to pursue his academic dreams. “We were thrown out of the hostel. Apart from the academic loss, I also have to incur expenses on accommodation, water and power supply. My family cannot pay so much. I have wasted two months. They have just allowed me to take my exams. I need to sit for the forensic science viva but how can I when I am not allowed the practicals?” Mr. Ranjan asks.
Sandeep Shastri, another Dalit student, says: “The Dalit representation is being attacked. They don’t want us to have a stake in higher education. It is a conspiracy against us.”
“We got the strength to raise our voice from Rohith,” says third-year B.Tech computer science student Prem Kumar, who was inspired to join the protests stirred by the Rohith incident.
