For An Informed Ambedkar Age
T. Sowjanya A dalit woman colleague of mine came to the university campus wearing a mangalsutra one day and this forms the context for my discussion. An upper-caste feminist professor was a little inquisitive about the reason for wearing the mangalsutra. In a lighter mood, the dalit woman professor responded, “My parents-in-law came to …
Akhil Kang I think I have lost count of the number of times I have felt immensely guilty of getting what I have got because of my caste. I remember sitting in my university classes, people looking directly at my face and saying ‘some lower castes’ individuals do not deserve to be here, because …
Dharma Teja I attended the Beef Bachao Andolan: An Open Protest Meet, held at Lamakaan, Hyderabad, on 24th May. The open invitation on the official Facebook page of Beef Bachao Andolan was as follows: “Progressive literatti, poets, writers, scribes, journalists, singers, balladeers gather today to sing, dance, talk, and express their solidarity on the …
Anoop Kumar (His speech at the ‘The Colonization of Ambedkar: Caste Politics behind Roy-Navayana’s Appropriation of Annihilation of Caste ~ A Discussion‘ held on 21st December, 2014, at University of Mumbai) My name is Anoop and I am not an academician or a very accomplished speaker so please excuse me if I am not …
Swati Kamble As I read the article ‘India denies ‘caste’ as factor of gender inequality‘ by Meena Menon, in The Hindu, I was reminded of my experiences at the World Conference on Youth. Below is my account of the incidence. The World Conference on Youth started on 6th May 2014 with a grand inauguration ceremony in …
Hany Babu Introduction The way in which certain classes of people including Dalits, Adivasis, Minorities and the disabled persons are made invisible or marginalised in the mainstream discourse has been often talked about. Mainstream discourse also pays scant attention and there is hardly any public outrage when Dalit students are driven to suicides in …
Dickens Leonard M A war has been unleashed – political cultures that believe in dialogue and democratic transformation are battling against those which forcefully dictate determinism and fatalism! Students across India protest against the “de-recognition” of Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle (APSC), an independent students’ group at the Indian Institute of Technology – Madras (IIT-M), …
Rupesh Kumar The ban on Ambedkar Periyar Student Circle (APSC) in IIT Madras, endorsed by the Ministry of Human Resources and Development and undersigned by the Minister Smriti Irani, is nothing but the operation of the Brahmanical caste system to exclude alternative voices from Indian academia and its polity. It is a new strategy by …
Purnachandra Naik Friends, as you all know a student organization of IIT Madras, Ambedkar-Periyar Study Circle (APSC) has been banned by the administration of IIT Madras for “misuse of the privileges” and for engaging in “controversial activities”. While the administration does not clarify what it means by “misuse of the privileges” and “controversial activities”, …