The students of University of Hyderabad(UOH) observed “Shahadat Din” or Martyrdom Day on Wednesday marking the second anniversary of the suicide by Dalit research scholar Rohit Vemula.
A large number of students and activists took out a procession under the aegis of Ambedkar Students Association from the point where students had staged protests for a long time to demand justice for Vemula.
With tight security arrangements in place around the campus, the University authorities, for the first time, allowed activists from outside to attend the protest programs, including a seminar to discuss the recent spurt in the incidents of atrocities against the Dalit communities.
The speakers recalled the circumstances in which Rohith hanged himself in the hostel room of the UOH two years ago as his cry for justice was ignored by the administration. He ended his life after a prolonged protest to get his and five other students’ suspension revoked.
Rohith’s mother Radhik Vemula, who has been unrelenting in her campaign for justice for her son for the last two years was the focus of attention in Wednesday’s protest programs.
“The sacrifice of my son marks a turning point in the Dalit struggle for justice. His statue on the campus will have as much significance as the Bhima-Koregaon pillar”, she said.The protest meeting was addressed by several notable personalities including Prakash Ambedkar and author Prof Kancha Illaiah.
The speakers regretted that despite the two year long struggle and wait authorities had failed to do justice to Rohith. “Instead they were trying to manipulate the records to prove Rohith was not a Dalit”, said Kancha Illaiah.
Prof K lakshminarayana, who was recently targeted by the Akhila Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad national convenor Karan Palsaniya on the social media termed Rohith’s death as an institutional murder and held the BJP, ABVP and the UOH vice chancellor Appa Rao Podile responsible for driving him to suicide.
Kancha Illaih noted that Rohith’s suicide had triggered the mobilization of Dalit and left Bahujan movement and brought the issue of caste discrimination into sharp focus at the national level. “It will continue to have a long term effect”, he said.
Meanwhile the National Students Union of India, affiliated to Congress also organized Students Rights Convention to pay tributes to Rohith Vemula on the campus.
Telangana state Congress president N Uttar Kumar Reddy demanded justice for Vemula. “even after two years Rohit Vemula has been denied justice. Neither those responsible for his death were punished nor factors that drove him to suicide were addressed”.
Meanwhile the case booked in connection with Vemula’s suicide under SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act by the Cyberabad Police was in limbo as the issue of his caste identity was under probe.
The administration of Guntur district has sent a report saying Rohit was not a Dalit but belonged to the backward classes but Rohit’s family has questioned the claim and waging a legal battle against it.