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The National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) has issued notices to Telangana Chief Secretary K. Ramakrishna Rao and Director General of Police Jitender, seeking an action-taken report against Telangana Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society (TGSWREIS) Secretary V. S. Alagu Varshini. The notices, issued on June 1, follow public outrage over Varshini’s controversial remarks about Dalit students studying in government-run residential schools. The Commission has directed the state officials to submit their report within 15 days.
The controversy erupted after an audio clip of Varshini surfaced online on May 31. In the recording, believed to be from a review meeting with school principals, Varshini instructed them to involve students in cleaning hostel rooms, classrooms, and toilets. She also reportedly said that the students, being from “not too posh” backgrounds, must be taught to make rotis and handle domestic tasks themselves. “They have to do roti making, they will do roti making,” she said.
The clip triggered widespread condemnation from political leaders, child rights activists, and civil society members who called the remarks discriminatory and exploitative.
Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLC Kalvakuntla Kavitha shared the clip on X (formerly Twitter) and criticised the Congress-led Telangana government for stopping monthly sanitation funds. She said that during the previous BRS regime, each social welfare school received Rs 40,000 every month to hire four temporary workers for cleaning. However, these funds were discontinued in May 2024, she alleged.
Kavitha further claimed that the Congress government had removed assistant caretakers from 240 schools, effectively forcing students to take on the roles of wardens and kitchen staff. “Now, the officer is forcing children to clean toilets in schools,” she wrote, calling it a violation of child rights and human dignity.
Former TGSWREIS Secretary and BRS leader Dr. R. S. Praveen Kumar also condemned Varshini’s remarks. Speaking to the media, he questioned whether such duties would be assigned to the Chief Minister’s own children. While acknowledging the value of teaching self-help and life skills, he criticised the singling out of Dalit students for menial work. “These children belong to the most oppressed communities. Their parents have done this kind of work for 20 centuries. Why are these ‘experiments’ always done on them?” he asked.
Dr. Praveen Kumar also demanded Varshini’s removal and urged the state government to immediately reinstate maintenance funds for the schools. “Stop forcing children to do the work of cleaning and cooking. These are not just welfare institutions; they are centres for empowerment,” he said.
Meanwhile, Varshini justified her remarks arguing that her comments were meant to encourage life skills among students from extremely poor backgrounds. “Why can’t they clean their own toilets? This is part of growing up,” she was heard saying in the audio. “I cannot provide luxury. Once they leave school, they must be able to manage on their own.”
In a second audio message shared with the media, Varshini appealed for her remarks not to be taken out of context or politicised. She denied allegations of staff shortages and maintained that involving students in daily chores was part of holistic education.