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The Ambedkar Students Association (ASA), a student organisation, at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) on Monday, February 23, staged a protest alleging administrative inaction in a case involving an alleged caste-based assault on a Dalit student. The protest organised by ASA, and other student bodies like All India Students' Association (AISA), Muslim Students Federation (MSF) and Fraternity Movement comes amid renewed focus on the implementation of the UGC’s anti-discrimination regulations in higher educational institutions.
The student, Anuj Kumar, a second-year MA Sociology student, was allegedly assaulted by Suryavardhan Singh Bablu, a second-year MA History student, following a personal dispute that escalated into a physical altercation. During the incident, Suryavardhan, the former president of the All Indian Other Backward Castes Students Association (AIOBCSA), allegedly used casteist slurs against Anuj and also threatened his roommate, ASA members told TNM.
ASA criticised what it described as the silence of AIOBCSA, alleging that the organisation had been “quiet on the matter and have actively denied the legitimacy of Anuj’s complaint.”
ASA also alleged that Joint Registrar of the Reservation and Coordination Cell P Thukaram delayed action on the complaint and accused Chief Proctor Sanjay Subodh of apathy. The association demanded that the Anti-Discrimination Cell conduct a thorough inquiry, initiate disciplinary action against Suryavardhan, and remove both officials for their alleged failure to act.
Responding to the allegations, AIOBCSA accused ASA of “selective morality” in handling similar issues within its own organisation. “We will take an appropriate decision on the matter only after receiving the official minutes and final decision of the Anti Discrimination Committee and Proctoral Committee,” they said.
Both Anuj and Suryavardhan have filed complaints with the university’s Anti-Discrimination Cell alleging caste-based violence ragging respectively. Anuj has also approached the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC), which has forwarded the complaint to the Rachakonda Police Commissionerate and directed the Commissioner to submit an action-taken report within 30 days.
A UoH official handling the case told TNM that hearings had been conducted and recommendations were submitted to the Dean of Student Welfare, the Chief Proctor and the Chief Warden. “We had two days of hearings and listened to Anuj’s complaints. The minutes were written and recommendations have been sent to the Dean of Student Welfare (DSW), the Chief Proctor and the Chief Warden. Suryavardhan has also registered a complaint of ragging against Anuj. The complaints were sent a week ago and investigation is still underway,” the official said.
Recently the Union government amended the University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity in Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2012, with new rules that addressed caste, gender, and disability-based discrimination on campuses. The Supreme Court has however stalled its implementation stating that the rules were “vague and capable of misuse.”