Discussion on 'Caste discrimination in Delhi University admissions'

Via Ratnesh Kumar

Insight Foundation

in collaboration with

Academic Forum for Social Justice

invites you for a discussion on

"Caste discrimination in Delhi University admissions"

Date: 19th August 2012 (Sunday)

Time: 9am to 1pm

Venue: Indian Social Institute, Lodhi Road, New Delhi

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Speakers

R.R. Bag (Social Thinker)

Amar Singh (Secretary, DU SC/ST Employees' Association)

Dr. Raj Kumar (Assistant Professor, Dyal Singh College)

Dr. Sukumar (Assistant Professor, Dept. of Pol. Science, DU)

Dr. Kedar Mandal (Assistant Professor, Dyal Singh College & President, AFSJ)

Dr. Hany Babu (Associate Professor, DU & Secretary, AFSJ)

Gurinder Azad (Student Coordinator, Insight Foundation)

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Dear friends,

We all have seen the flawed way in which the University of Delhi has been implementing the constitutional mandate of reservation for SC/ST/OBC students. An RTI revealed that around 5400 seats belongs to reserve category were transferred to general category candidates in 2010. Another RTI shows that in 2011, more than 6000 seats reserved for SC/ST/OBC were not filled by candidates from these categories.

At the same time, the admissions in "General Category" show an excess of around 15,000 seats. Thus on the one hand, the University denies seats to SC/ST/OBC, and, on the other, admits more than the sanctioned strength in the General Category.

Over the last few years, many student organizations, teachers and activists collectively have been raising their voices against this bias, while the University shamelessly continues with its anti-reservation policies. Several representations have been given to the University, several protest marches have been organized, several meetings have been held with the representatives from the University even in the presence of the Union Minister for HRD, and Writ Petitions have been filed in the High Court and Supreme Court.

Ever since the admission process started this year in June, many students' and teachers' organizations have been engaged in a relentless struggle to ensure the proper implementation of reservation in the University of Delhi. However, the University and its constituent colleges have been distorting rules and inventing new ways to deprive SC/ST/OBC students the opportunity provided by the reservation policy.

It has also become evident that the admission procedure that the University has devised for SC/ST students is highly discriminatory and denies them the fundamental right of equality enshrined in the Constitution of India.

In the wake of all this, the Insight Foundation in collaboration with the Academic Forum for Social Justice (an organization of the teachers of the University which has been actively engaged in the struggle for proper implementation of reservation at the University) is organizing a half day seminar.

We invite all of you to participate in the discussion!

To know more on this issue please go through the following articles published in Round Table India: Mockery of Reservation at the University of Delhi and Two glass system in a Central University: The unseen ways of caste discrimination. And also watch the following documentary: A Conspiracy Against SC/ST/OBC Students in Delhi University produced by www.neelkranti.com.

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