Protests over student’s death must now end
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's expression of profound grief over the suicide of a Dalit scholar of the University of Hyderabad and the Government's decision to institute a judicial inquiry into the incident ought to contain the anger that has developed over the last week. Whether it will persuade the agitating students to end their protest and trust democratic mechanisms to get to the bottom of the truth and provide justice to the victim's family and to his memory remains to be seen. Yet, an end to the agitation is desirable. With a judicial probe ordered, the protesters shouldn't insist on the immediate resignations of Union Ministers or the university's Vice Chancellor.
The investigation, which by its very nature is certain to be impartial and comprehensive, will bring into the public domain all aspects that led to Rohith Vemula's suicide. The Union Minister of Human Resource Development's recommendation for a judicial inquiry came on the heels of a report by a two-member fact-finding committee which pointed to a “complete systemic failure” and hinted at lapses on the part of university authorities in handling the issue from the time it erupted as a clash between two student groups. On his part, Prime Minister Modi too, while addressing a gathering in lucknow on Friday, remarked that Vemula was “compelled” to end his life. The Centre has, thus, in more ways than one, acknowledged there have been failures, and that it is determined to establish accountability. The protesting students must see reason and allow the probe process to do its job.
The judicial panel has three months to complete its task and, therefore, the truth will be known soon enough. In fact, some of the students who had been close to Vemula and may have information related to the gamut of incidents that led to the suicide should come forward to share material with the judicial commission once the panel begins its work. At another level, the case is already being investigated; the suicide note left behind by the victim has been sent for forensic examination. If the students persist with their agitation, they will merely be playing into the hands of vested interests that are out to make political capital out of the tragedy. Already, we have seen a steady flow of leaders arriving at the university, meeting the protesting students as well as members of the victim's family, and using the occasion to score political points over the Union Government.
Given that Vemula's death is not the first suicide of a student of the University of Hyderabad in recent years — one report has it that nine students ended their lives in the last decade — it is clear that something is problematic deep within the university's functioning. Hopefully, the judicial panel will be able to highlight the rot and suggest measures to correct the anomalies. While it is true that across the country, students, who come from rural backgrounds and from less-privileged socio-economic status to colleges and universities located in cities, face the tremendous problem of discrimination, this malaise appears to be more prevalent in certain institutions — and the University of Hyderabad appears to be one of them. Meanwhile, the scourge of social discrimination based on caste and community must be taken head-on.