How Many More Rohiths?
Rohith Shahadat Din
This Rohith Shahadat Din (Rohith Martyrdom Day), we mourn not only Rohith but the countless Dalit, Bahujan, and Adivasi students lost to higher education institutional murders. The youth of our communities make it to colleges and universities despite so many hurdles, and instead of being given support, we face even more systemic and interpersonal discrimination. Every such death on campus is a painful reminder that higher education for marginalized caste students remains a dream that is highly coveted yet heavily restricted, often at the ultimate cost. Like Rohith wrote in his last letter:
“The value of a man was reduced to his immediate identity and nearest possibility. To a vote. To a number. To a thing. Never was a man treated as a mind. As a glorious thing made up of stardust. In every field, in studies, in the streets, in politics, and in dying and living.”
Rohith’s Legacy
Rohith Vemula’s institutional murder shook the Bahujan-Dalit-Adivasi community and brought the issue of casteism in universities to national attention. In so many campus spaces, caste was being discussed for the first time. Even in his death, just like in his life, Rohith left a legacy of equality and challenging caste-based discrimination, which Radhika Amma and a new generation of Anti-Caste Ambedkarites now carry forward. Two of the biggest assertions to come from the ‘Rohith Movement’ are-
The demand for a Rohith Act (#EnactRohithAct Campaign)
The Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed on behalf of Radhika Vemula and Abeda Salim Tadvi, mothers of Rohith Vemula and Payal Tadvi.
The Reality of Institutional Murders
At least 115 institutional murders occurred in IITs alone between 2004 and 2024. Most numbers go unrecorded because the educational administrations want to deny the existence of this problem they are complicit in, just like we saw in Rohith’s case with the University of Hyderabad. The casteism is structural and manifests in how the department heads, institution heads, management, or professors conduct themselves in classes, vivas, hirings, and complaint responses.
How many lives will it take before these administrations and India acknowledge oppressor caste hegemony in educational institutes?
Thorat Committee Report
Nearly a decade before Rohith’s institutional murder, the Thorat Committee was formed in 2007 following the Anti-OBC Reservation Agitation (ARA) which led to the harassment of SC/ST (Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe) students in All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). It was the first-ever committee constituted to study caste discrimination in higher education. In the 77-page report, it was revealed that-
76% of the students were asked about their caste directly or indirectly during evaluations, while 84% of the students claimed that their grades were affected owing to their caste.
Marginalized caste students were forced to live in isolation in hostel rooms and faced discrimination in the mess
SC/ST students faced abuse and violence by dominant castes and external examiners who were invited to the viva.
SC/ST students experienced discrimination in various forms, from avoidance, contempt, non-cooperation, discouragement, and differential treatment by teachers towards these students.
The AIIMS authorities rejected this report, and the recommendations therein were never implemented. Following this, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (“NCSC”) also released a report in 2008 titled “Report of the NCSC into Incidents of Caste–Based Discrimination & Harassment at AIIMS”. The report highlighted the continued prevalence of caste discrimination at the institute and the active role of the administration in the same.
Even after 18 years of this landmark report, we still have to demand the implementation of the Thorat Committee recommendations.
Initiatives to prevent discrimination in Higher Education
On paper, the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) 2012 Grievance Redressal Regulations aim to prevent discrimination and harassment, particularly for SC/ST students, by establishing Equal Opportunity Cells and SC/ST Cells in universities. In 2019, UGC advised all the Vice-Chancellor of all Universities to constitute a committee to look into the discrimination complaints received from the SC/ST/OBC Students/Teachers and non-teaching staff.
But are these Special Cells against caste-based discrimination in Universities actually working?
According to the testimony given by the Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC) of IIT Bombay, it was a long struggle to get the IITs to establish SC/ST cells. A struggle which had begun in September 2014, after Aniket Ambhore, a 22-year-old fourth-year B. Tech student of IIT Bombay, died from falling from a hostel building on the campus at IIT Bombay]. As per their narrative, it was due to their consistent struggles that a special cell was established in IITs. It took them 7 years to set up the SC/ST Cell on the campus. National Law University’s website shows that NLUs, considered the top colleges for studying law, do not have SC/ST Cells, but have Equal Opportunity cells.
Why are the UGC Equity Guidelines not working?
A major factor behind the inefficacy of the SC/ST cells is their composition, jurisdiction, and lack of power. The SC/ST Cells are constituted of members belonging to oppressor castes, which decreases both the legitimacy and trust of the DBA students towards the cells. As a result of this, people with only a superficial understanding of caste hegemony in education and academia are suddenly given the power to solve such issues that they are themselves responsible for, directly or indirectly, without having received any stringent educational sessions for the same. It is critical to ensure independent and consistent monitoring of their functioning.
Additionally, it is crucial to note that these cells, both SC/ST and Equal Opportunity Cells, are only advisory in nature. Hence, if a person belonging to the marginalized community is facing any type of discrimination, these cells do not have any power to take any punitive action. Furthermore, if the recommendations given by the aforementioned cells are not implemented or abided by, there is no mechanism or procedure to ensure compliance with recommendations. The anti-ragging committees are again bodies that have largely only oppressor caste members; most of the time these are not interested in taking any action over issues concerning students from caste-marginalized communities.
Unlike analogous mechanisms such as the UGC Anti-Ragging Regulations (2009), which mandate anti-ragging committees, or the UGC POSH Regulations (2015), which require internal complaints committees—caste-related grievances are left to the discretion of an Anti-Discrimination Officer (ADO) appointed from within the same institution. This allows for potential bias and compromises the fairness of the inquiry process. Where anti-ragging and sexual harassment complaints often lead to structured investigations and accountability, caste-based complaints are frequently handled with superficial remedies, such as counseling sessions, meetings, or mere warnings to perpetrators. Such inadequate responses fail to address the gravity of caste discrimination, allowing the cycle of injustice to continue unchecked. Even more glaringly, these regulations do not cover SC/ST faculty members and staff, who also endure systemic hostility and indignities in their workplaces. Finally, SC/ST cells have no mandate to appoint mental health counselors from the SC/ST communities. The stark contrast in handling caste-related issues on campus versus other forms of discrimination highlights an urgent need for comprehensive legislation specifically aimed at protecting SC/ST students and faculty from mistreatment perpetuated by caste-based discrimination.
The landmark PIL for Casteism in Higher Education
Due to the increase in cases of institutional campus murders and the lack of justice for their children, Radhika Vemula and Abeda Salim Tadvi, mothers of Rohith Vemula and Payal Tadvi, filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) against the University Grants Commission (UGC) to-
Strictly ensure enforcement of and compliance with the UGC Equity Regulations.
Ensure that all Universities and HEIs establish Equal Opportunity Cells and include members from the SC, ST communities and independent representatives from NGOs or social activists to ensure objectivity and impartiality in the process.
Direct all Universities and HEIs to organize compulsory orientation courses, workshops, and trainings for staff, administrators, and students to create separate modules for sensitization on the issues of caste from time to time.
Revive and fund the activities of the Equal Opportunity Cells/ SC/ST Cells in colleges and Universities for sensitization on caste issues.
Direct all Universities and HEIs to conduct preparatory courses, and bridge courses, including peer learning mechanisms, to support SC/ST students and first/second generation learners from these communities on campus.
Direct all Universities to take strong disciplinary action against the victimization of students/staff who file complaints alleging caste-based discrimination and to take necessary steps like interim reliefs that restrain the HEI from creating a hostile environment against students who file such complaints.
Take necessary and strict actions against any University or HEI that contravenes or repeatedly fails to comply with the obligations and duties laid out in the Equity Guidelines.
Impose sanctions on universities failing to take action in cases of complaints of caste-based discrimination.
Ensure that all Universities and HEIs upload on their websites all measures for the elimination of caste-based discrimination and procedures and punishments for breaching them.
Direct the Deans/Heads of Institutions of all HEIs to register an FIR within 24 hours, if a complaint alleging caste-based discrimination attracts penal laws.
Improve the process of disbursement of scholarships and fellowships to SC, ST, and OBC students by the digitization of the process, and faster processing of applications.
Direct all Universities and Deemed Universities to establish Monitoring Cells that oversee the implementation of the Equity Guidelines and other caste-based discrimination measures and that such monitoring cells be asked to file periodic status reports to the UGC.
Call for the Rohith Act
The tragic death of Rohith Vemula sparked a wave of protests across the nation, demanding justice and systemic change. Among these demands was the call for a groundbreaking "Rohith Act," akin to the transformative Nirbhaya Act. But nine years later, despite the loss of countless Dalit and Adivasi students to caste-based discrimination, this vital legislation remains unrealized.
Radhika Vemula and Abeda Salim Tadvi, the two mothers acting as petitioners, have become symbols of resistance against casteism and oppression in education. They continue their fight to ensure equitable campuses for future generations of SC/ST students, despite the devastating loss of their own children.
Notably, the petition was not filed for personal relief but with the noble aim of fostering social justice in educational institutions. The historic petition lays out powerful, actionable measures that could profoundly reshape higher education into a space of true equality. These include strict enforcement of the 2012 Equity Regulations, establishing Equal Opportunity Cells in all higher educational institutions—including private universities—and ensuring transparency by mandating institutions to publicly share their anti-discrimination measures. Crucially, the petition emphasizes holding universities accountable by taking strong disciplinary action against perpetrators of caste-based harassment and imposing penalties on institutions that fail to act. Furthermore, it urges NAAC, the body responsible for accrediting educational institutions, to make "measures to prevent caste-based discrimination" a mandatory criterion for accreditation.
This isn't just a call for better rules—it's a cry for justice, dignity, and safety in spaces that should nurture dreams, not crush them under the weight of discrimination. The time for the Rohith Act is now. Every day we delay is another day of betrayal to the students and staff who trust these institutions to protect and uplift them. This fight demands more than rhetoric. The government and judiciary must rise to the occasion, taking an unyielding stance against the hypocrisy and deep-seated hatred poisoning these so-called progressive university spaces. Words alone will not suffice; laws must be enacted and enforced with unwavering resolve, transforming promises into protection. Rohith Vemula’s death, and those of countless others like him, must not be reduced to mere statistics, forgotten data, or dismissed as “fatal accidents”.
Sources:
https://www.nlhmb.in/Reports%20AIIMS.pdf https://www.livelaw.in/pdf_upload/pdf_upload-363730.pdfhttps://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/full-text-dalit-scholar-rohith-vemulas-suicide-note/articleshow/50634646.cmshttps://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ugc-affidavit-in-supreme-court-refers-to-a-letter-to-vcs-to-act-against-caste-discrimination-by-faculty-officials/article69081764.ecehttps://www.livelaw.in/top-stories/supreme-court-seeks-data-from-ugc-on-equal-opportunity-cells-complaints-under-2012-regulations-caste-discrimination-279914https://cjp.org.in/how-many-lives-will-it-take-before-india-acknowledges-dominant-caste-hegemony-in-educational-institutes/https://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-hrd-ministry-fails-to-implement-thorat-committee-recommendations-2169141https://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/delhi/2019/May/30/there-is-bitterness-towards-quota-students-thorat-1983949.htmlhttps://article-14.com/post/-caste-on-campus-dalit-students-face-exclusion-alienation-in-india-s-higher-education-institutions--642b88a7149fe
