Open letter to the President of India from Concerned students and faculty at the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta.
To
The President of India
Subject: An urgent appeal to address discrimination and political interference in academic institutions in the wake of the death of RohithVemula.
We, a group of students and faculty of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta,expressour grief over the loss of the precious life of RohithVemula, a Dalit research scholar, at the University of Hyderabad.The events that transpired in the particular case were indeed tragic, with allegedinfringement of freedom of expression, caste discrimination and partisan interference by the higher State apparatus. This event is symptomatic of the larger malaise of failure of our institutions to provide a climate where students, irrespective of their social backgrounds, could find a way to excel. To create such a climate would require synchronised efforts in the parts of the State, the educational institutions and the society at large.
We express solidarity with students, teachers and others who are actively involved to stop the recurrence of such incidents in future. We urgently appeal for the adoption of measures to end discrimination of any kind in academic institutions and elsewhere. We also hope that institutional mechanism will be developed to prevent partisan political interference in academic institutions.
With regard to the specific case, we strongly appeal that the individuals found guilty by the judicial enquiry be exposed and punished and adequate compensation be provided to the deceased’s family, although their loss is immeasurable.
Thanks and Regards,
Concerned students and faculty at the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta
Copy to:
- The Vice Chancellor, University of Hyderabad
- Minister of Human Resource Development, Government of India
List of Signatories
- Abhishek Debbarman
- Akash Krishnan
- AmbujAnand
- AmitDhiman
- Anirban Banerjee
- Ankita
- Anup K Sinha
- ApoorvKhare
- Aravind A N
- Arnab Roy Chowdhury
- ArpitSrivastava
- AshutoshJha
- Asim Kumar Pal
- BhaskarChakrabarty
- Biju Paul Abraham
- Bunny Babjee
- DebaratiBasu
- Devi Vijay
- DiptimanBanerji
- KeertiPendyal
- KranthiNanduri
- KrishanuRakshit
- Manish Thakur
- Meghna Singh
- MritiunjoyMohanty
- Nishant Kashyap
- Nithin Mannil
- Nivedita Bhanja
- Paribhasha Sharma
- Partha Ray
- Pavni Kaushiva
- Pradeep Kavangal
- Pratik Tarafdar
- Priyanshu Gupta
- PulkitTaluja
- R Chattopadhyay
- R Rajesh Babu
- Radhika Ijjurotu
- Rajesh Bhattacharya
- Ritwik Banerjee
- RohitPatidar
- RohitVarman
- RunaSarkar
- Sarath Chandra
- SaikatMondal
- Shalini
- Shalini Pasupuleti
- Sharzeelzafaryab
- SmitaChaudhry
- Srujana
- SudipChaudhuri
- SushilKhanna
- Swathysree S S
- Usman Ahmad
- V Sravani
- Vamshikrisna
- Vandana
- VarunKapoor
- Venkat
- Vidyanand Jha
Good sign that management students too are coming for support.
People refuse to see the facts !!!
When does the rights to live safely and securely trump our obligation to up hold basic human rights? In our attitude toward extreme remedies, we must come out pragmatic solutions. Because, deprived one people are living 1/3 rd of population and we must represents all aspect of life to cherish our democracy.