https://thewire.in/caste/iit-bombay-darshan-solanki-suicide
Students said that only on a death are the casteist fissures of such premier institutes exposed, gaining media traction. “But if you closely observe the everyday working of these campuses, you will know how suffocating and alienating these spaces can be for Bahujan students,” says Kanthi Swaroop, a PhD scholar and member of the ASC. He says at IITs, the student’s soft skills, linguistic abilities and ability to participate in extracurricular activities are considered of utmost importance and young Bahujan students, from rural backgrounds, find it hard in the initial years. These soft skills, Swaroop says, decide how the teachers treat you in class, their recommendations, and even placement at the end of the fifth year.
“Alienation starts rights at the beginning of the academic journey. And even if the student manages to overcome these obstacles and settle down by the end of second or third semester, he can’t ever be a part of the inner Savarna circle,” Swapnil Gedam, a PhD scholar and member of the ASC, points out. He says the alienation endured by Dalit and Adivasi students on campus is only comparable to Dr B.R. Ambedkar’s theorisation of “social boycott”.
While suicides in universities are not uncommon, Gedam says that the responses differ depending on the student’s caste location. “When a Savarna student dies, the discourse is around his/her mental health. But when a Dalit or an Adivasi student is pushed to end their life, they are invariably looked at as a “loser” who couldn’t deal with academic pressure,” Gedam claims.
15/02/2023