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Caste bias in education: Rahul Gandhi urges Karnataka govt to enact Rohith Vemula Act
Rohith Vemula, a PhD scholar from the University of Hyderabad, died by suicide in January 2016 after allegedly facing institutional harassment.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Friday wrote to Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah urging the state government to enact the ‘Rohith Vemula Act’ against caste-based discrimination in educational institutions across the state.
The letter follows Gandhi’s recent meeting with students and teachers from Dalit, Adivasi and OBC communities in Parliament, where he was reportedly told that caste discrimination is rampant in colleges and universities.
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“It is very unfortunate that even after decades, lakhs of students are still facing caste discrimination in our education system,” Gandhi said in a post on X, sharing a copy of his letter to Siddaramaiah.
“We could get no water because we were untouchables,” Gandhi wrote in the letter, quoting Dr BR Ambedkar’s account of an incident during a bullock cart journey.
He also cited Ambedkar’s time in school and said, “I could not sit in the midst of my classmates according to my rank, but that I was to sit in a corner by myself.”
These recollections, Gandhi said, are not just part of history, but remain relevant even today.
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The Congress MP pointed out that millions of students from the Dalit, Adivasi and OBC communities have to face such “brutal discrimination” in India’s educational system. “I know you would agree that what Dr BR Ambedkar faced was shameful and should not be endured by any child in India,” Gandhi said.
Highlighting suicide cases from 2016, 2019, and 2023, he wrote, “This discrimination has taken the lives of promising students like Rohith Vemula, Payal Tadvi and Darshan Solanki. Such horrific incidents cannot be tolerated at any cost. Now is the time to put a complete stop to this injustice.”
“I urge the Karnataka government to enact the Rohith Vemula Act so that no child of India has to face what Dr BR Ambedkar, Rohith Vemula and millions of others have had to endure,” he said.
Siddaramaiah thanked Gandhi for his “unwavering commitment to social justice” and said, “Our government stands firm in its resolve to enact the Rohith Vemula Act in Karnataka — to ensure no student faces discrimination based on caste, class, or religion. We will bring this legislation at the earliest to honour the dreams of Rohith, Payal, Darshan, and countless others who deserved dignity, not exclusion. This will be a step towards realising Dr BR Ambedkar’s vision of an equal, compassionate India.”
Rohith Vemula, a PhD scholar from the University of Hyderabad, died by suicide in January 2016 after allegedly facing institutional harassment. He was initially said to be a Dalit. But in 2024, the Telangana Police filed a closure report in the case stating that Rohith did not belong to the Scheduled Caste and committed suicide in fear of his real caste getting discovered.
Congress has proposed the Rohith Vemula Act multiple times, though not yet enacted at the national level. The ‘Nyay Patra’ released by the party at the time of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections guaranteed the enactment of the Act to “address discrimination faced by students belonging to the backwards and oppressed communities in educational institutions”.
