Before coming to this campus I was a studious student. Though I have heard of Caste discrimination before, this institute taught me how Caste functions. Friends here taught me then what are “Dalit”, and the history of discrimination faced by them. I hail from a “Scavenging” background. Two years of my life in CIEFL was miserable, as I was trying to accommodate with my campus atmosphere and their new ideology (Since then I could never become a ‘studious’ students in a literal meaning). They even taught how Caste functions within an Institute. As a result there were lots of issues taken by the “progressive” students, saying they were discriminated. They said due to Brahmins domination in the administration we do not even get a chance to discuss our problem. They concluded saying when we are in majority we can address all our problems. But friends believe, earlier we have very little “progressive” faculties/administrators in the campus. Above saying this they even taught me how to take up an issue? But sadly they never taught me how to be a mere spectator. And this is where I got up as a Cat on a wall. It is due to this “progressive” people our country is yet to go towards a social revolution. These people sideline with the mainstream thinking of changing the structure but at last they end up becoming the part of the mainstream. The Indian history of the low caste movements is the example.
At present there are many “progressive” and even well wishers, but still the atmosphere of the University led a subaltern students’ in one particular department to face discrimination (There are many departments practicing discrimination; this was the first to explode). If you think I am exaggerating, check the results of SC/ST/OBC’s in the all programmes, it is worse than the earlier period. It was in this administration (“progressive”) the person who discriminated can walk freely with the students’ future is put under the Carpet. In every campus the discrimination functions in a subtle way. To understand this “Progressive” department, students don’t take risk of studying “partha Chatterjee, Gail Omvedt etc.” Just check the results given to the subaltern students in the under graduate to understand how Caste functions in educational atmosphere. “Progressive” students who are in the impression that one day Ms. Mayawathi or any Dalit will become PM and our problems will get solved, they should learn a lesson from this university that in her/a Dalit PM period our problem can get worse, therefore you learn to lobby rather than speaking Caste, etc.,(at recent times every one is lobbying rather changing the social structure). If I am sarcastic read some of the questions I have raised and think how we reacted for the same.
Do we know, that in IIT Kanpur 38 students are sacked and among them almost 28 students are SC/ST?
Do we know that recently a Tribal girl was raped in AP, and she was forced not to go for medical test?
Do we know that a girl name Ms. Anusha committed suicide jumping from a college building because her friends started discriminating her for a week?
Do we know that recently a couple, a Dalit boy and an upper Caste girl were butchered by the girl’s brother for getting married to a Dalit?
Do we know that the Scavenger / Sweeper, who cleans our hostel and administration toilet, did not get anything from this so-called “progressive” department or activism?
Most of us know that many of the construction labourers daughters/son’s use to beg in front of Sagar. Do our literatures or theories not say or discuss how to stop such a thing? But we all know why they are indulging in such things. The writer does not give solution because if they give solution then they cannot criticize and make money out of anything.
Do you know that in AP Methars (Relli) are one of the population indulged in Scavenging, for a proof our so-called Caste active campus has two Methars who are still doing Scavenging.
Don’t you know that most of us are one or the other member of a solidarity committee but none of us are ever trying to solve the root cause?
If we think that we have done a mistake by not rising up for the above cause then again we are doing a mistake, because our education system teaches only to theories but not to react. Therefore feel happy that you are not on wrong side rather you are in the right path as any “progressive” students or politician for that matter.
At last saying all this did we do anything knowing all this? Yes, at least I did by writing in this blog and rests of us can theorise whichever way we can. But never try to solve any of the above problems, because I can’t write on this blog and you can’t theorize.
