Dalit student’s death gains political heat, campus protests on

Amid high drama and widespread protests by several student organisations, Rahul flew down to the city by a special flight, visited the university campus in the upmarket Gachibowli area, and expressed solidarity with the agitating students.

Mr. Gandhi said a university was also about knowledge.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is likely to visit the university on Thursday.

Another Congress leader Kumari Selja has said the Prime Minister should ask for the resignation of Labour Minister, Bandaru Dattatreya.

Hyderabad Central University Vice Chancellor Appa Rao, who is at the centre of a raging controversy over suicide by a Dalit student following his suspension, today asserted there had been “no pressure” from Union Ministers or the HRD Ministry to act against the youth. Even LJP leader Chirag Paswan, a BJP ally, said the incident should be probed by CBI.

HRD ministry insisted that it was only trying to get “fact/comments on a VIP reference” as per procedure. “We took the letters received as routine letters”, he said, adding, “there was no phone call from either of the ministers or any ministry official”.

Indian police on Monday fired water cannons to disperse students protesting the death of a young Dalit scholar who committed suicide after he was suspended from university, a case some have blamed on caste-based discrimination. Their names have been embroiled in the political controversy after Rohith’s sudden death.

“And that means that there is no question, absolutely no question, on merits, for the vice-chancellor to remain here”, he said.

The Vice Chancellor also disagreed to have a sympathetic attitude towards the BJP stating that he was not any party person.

Congress spokesperson Deepender Singh Hooda said that instead of apologising, Irani described the whole issue as Dalit vs non-Dalit, which is shameful.

Reddy and Yechury are scheduled to meet the protesting students of the University on Wednesday.

The Narendra Modi government has come under fire after it emerged that the HRD ministry had sent a series of letters to the varsity after Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya wrote to Irani demanding action against the five students. The action taken by the University was right and was upheld by the committee. She also said the Central government did not intervene in the functioning of the university and had no administrative control over it. She also conveyed her condolences to the family of the dead student. “This could be visualised from the fact that when Yakub Menon was hanged Ambedkar Students Association held protests against the execution”.