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FACT FINDING REPORT

Expulsion of SC/ST/OBC and PD students from

IIT, Roorkee

'Excellence' through

ExpulsionA case of Arbitrary Merit vs Constitutional Mandate

30th July 2015 – 1st August 2015

Written and Compiled by

Nidhin Donald Shobhana

Shefali Saini

Fact Finding Team

Dilip C. Mandal

Anoop Kumar

Gurinder Azad

Nidhin Donald Shobhana

Shefali Saini

National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights

National Dalit Movement for Justice

7/58, Ist Floor, South Patel Nagar, New Delhi 110008

Ph: 011-25842249, Fax: 91-11-25842250

E-mail ndmj@gmail.com

Website: www.ncdhr.org.in / www.annihilatecaste.in

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National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights

7/58, Ist Floor, South Patel Nagar, New Delhi 110008

Website: www.ncdhr.org.in / www.annihilatecaste.in

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Content

(I) Introduction

(a) History of Higher Education in India and

Consolidation of Brahmanical Merit

(b) Constitutional Rationale of Affirmative Action

(c) History of IITs and the political economy of

Brahmanical Merit

4

(II) Objective of the Fact Finding Mission 23

(III) Immediate Background 25

(IV) Manufacturing Failure : Interaction with affected

students

31

(V) Precautions only after the ‘Flood’: Interaction with

administration

41

(VI) Rules which ex-communicate: Interactions with

senior students

45

(VII) Under institutional dread : Present Status of the

students

47

(VIII) Observations 48

(IX) Recommendations 53

(X) The need to dismantle Brahmanical Merit :

Conclusion

55

(XI) Annexure 59

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Introduction

History of Higher Education in India and

Consolidation of Brahmanical Merit

Before we get into the details of the fact finding report, a

glimpse of how Higher education was established and

consolidated in India, in its present form, would be very

useful. This historical account would briefly deal with

three aspects (a) Rationale, nature and function of

Universities and non-university educational institutions

in India (b) Major actors in the establishment of higher

education in India (c) the social composition of its

beneficiaries.

Such an enquiry, would underline the historical

significance of this fact-finding exercise. The fact-finding

team is convinced that the entry of historically excluded

groups into public institutions is a historical rupture. It

marks a process of democratization for everyone.

Nevertheless, higher education continues to be the

monopoly of Brahmins and ‘upper castes’.

Post- Mandal India has witnessed deafening discourses

on merit and quality in higher education. These

discourses have more or less consolidated the merit of

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the ‘open category’ as absolute and unquestionable. One

is tempted to take a look at history to dismantle this

merit and understand how it was ‘realized’. While an

extensive look is beyond the purview of this report, a

glance is possible.

Syed Nurullah and J.P.Naik in their book1 chronicle

history of Education in India. They specifically dedicate

three chapters on the establishment and growth of

Indian Universities. They also reflect on the systems of

learning which existed prior to British intervention.

These reflections are based on the enquiries conducted

by British officials or missionaries in early 19th century

in Madras, Bombay and Calcutta. Such enquiries

categorically prove that education was almost always

‘confined to the Brahmins or the mercantile classes’.

Initially, even the British government focused on

‘encouraging the learned natives of India’ by spending a

sum of not less than one lakh rupees every year on

them2. The underlying assumption being that the so

called ‘learned’ (read as Brahmins and allied ‘upper

castes’) would introduce and promote the knowledge of

science among the inhabitants of India. However, this

scheme did not operationalize. On the other hand, any

attempt by Dalits and Bahujans to enter schools and

1Nurullah, S., & Naik, J. P. (1951). A history of education in India during

the British period. Macmillan.2 Charter Act of 1813

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other spaces of learning was vehemently opposed by the

‘learned natives’. The example of Swadeshabhimani

Ramakrishna Pillai, a Brahmanical nationalist and

Malayalam translator of Karl Marx’s biography is quite

telling. When Travancore princely state, passed an order

for Dalit school entry in early 20th century, Ramakrishna

Pillai wrote an editorial which not only opposed such a

move but also humiliated Dalits by stating that

‘Children of those who have cultivated land for

centuries cannot be seated along with children of those

who have cultivated their brains for centuries’.

The first colleges were set up with the help the British

Government in early 19th century3. These colleges were

modeled as per the pre-existing systems of learning,

specific to Savarana Hindus and Muslims. Later modern

colleges were established under the banner of

missionaries in Bombay, Madras, Agra, Delhi and

Calcutta. These colleges catered chiefly to the

brahmanical elite of the country. Commenting on this

period, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, in his essay

‘Christianizing India’ points out that the Missionaries

initially aimed at converting Brahmins and other ‘upper

castes’. They tried to achieve this aim by setting up

Colleges, Schools and Hospitals. The major benefits of

Christian institutions were reaped by the ‘high caste

Hindus’. Neither the composition nor the curriculum

3 These include Calcutta Madrassa and Benaras Sanskrit College.

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of these institutions reflected the social conflicts or

diversity of India. Universities, as examination

centers were established in India in 18574. They

did not conduct any teaching or research

programmes. They were conceived as

administrative spaces which conducted exams,

effectually ensuring employment in government

services.

Late 19th century and early 20th century witnessed the

rise of Brahmanical nationalists who established

colleges across the country5. The network of colleges

and universities, prepared the brahmanical elite to

readily possess government jobs. The rise of Indian

National Congress during the same period consolidated

the position of Brahmanical s further. For example, S.R.

Talukder in his path breaking essay titled ‘Indian Civil

Service Examination and The Savarna Merit’6 tells one

the story of how the ‘upper’ caste Indians consistently

underperformed in Indian Civil Services despite of

having non-discriminatory schooling in missionary

schools and colleges, consolidation of land ownership

through Permanent Settlement of Zamindari System,

political power through Indian National Congress and

4 Calcutta University, Bombay University and Madras University5 Fergusson College, Pune; Anglo Oriental College, Aligarh;

Pachaiyappa College and the Hindu Colleges at Vizagapatanam and

Tinnevelly, Madras etc.6 S.R.Talukder (1998), ‘Indian Civil Service Examination and Savarna

Merit’, Blumoon Books : New Delhi

8

cultural hegemony in every walk of life. In order to

redress this ‘non-meritocracy’, they made use of Indian

National Congress as a pressure group. British

administration provided several measures , such as

‘reservations’, ‘relaxed age limits’, ‘priority in specific

appointments’, ‘examination in Indian centers’ and

‘political nominations’ for the Brahmanical s.

Ultimately, the numbers titled in the favor of upper-

caste Indians only after Europeans persistently

backtracked from ICS after World War –I. Bhagwan

Das7 notes that the Brahmins in Madras and the

Bhadralok in Calcutta colonized the advantages of the

new educational policies and captured most of the posts

available in the administration.

Talukder, in the same book, points out that 15th August

1947 was a ‘day of miracle’ for the savarnas. It laid bare

all the important positions in public institutions for

upper-castes. At the time of independence, most of the

Indian ICS officers were inexperienced yet they were

promoted to high posts. Similarly, the newly established

institutions of ‘national importance’ such as IITs were

waiting for ready possession by the savarnas. The trend

still continues. A cursory look at the caste profile of the

7 Das Bhagwan (2000), Moments in the History of Reservations,

EPW, October 28, 2000 (retrieved from www.ambedkar.org)

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faculty in IITs would prove this trend8. As per the

National Commission for Scheduled Castes and

Scheduled Tribes, Fourth Report, 1996-97 and 1997-98

nearly 82% of Class –I government and non-government

services (in 1989) were monopolized by Brahmins,

Rajputs, Kayasthas and Baniyas. They are over-

represented in these positions approximately by 800%!

On the other hand, SC/ST/OBC and Muslims who

account for more than 80% of the population have less

11% representation in these services.

This ‘capture’ of public institutions by Brahmanical s

has a very long history. An extremely limited glimpse

was provided in the preceding paragraphs. One cannot

justify this ‘capture’ on the basis of merit. As Talukder,

pointed out, Brahmanical merit is a social construct of

aids and privileges which were produced by the caste

system. It is not biological but sociological.

8 As per Dalit Media Network, Chennai (2001) Dalits at the Indian

Institutes of Technology PUCL Bulletin, nearly 95% of the 427 faculty

positions in IIT (Madras) belonged to the Hindu ‘upper castes’. The

case is not different in IIT (Roorkee).

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Constitutional Rationale of Affirmative Action

Dr. B.R. Ambedkar philosophized higher education as

an instrument to seek power and dignity. V. Ramdas9

points out that Ambedkar strongly held that public

education is critical for the empowerment of Dalits and

Backward classes. He added that public education can

be meaningful only if it is representative of the elements

of national life of a country, especially the Scheduled

Castes.

Transformative politics lies at the heart of Ambedkar’s

educational vision. This politics was based on

emplacing the Dalit student and his/her crisis at the

centre of his vision. Through scholarships, loans,

promotion of science and technical education, ensuring

affirmative action in public offices and educational

institutions he devised an active role for the state in the

educational attainments of Dalits.

Arts. 15(3) (4), 16(4), 330, 332 and 340 of the Indian

Constitution form the basis for reservations (affirmative

action) to historically excluded groups. This affirmative

action upholds the spirit of democracy. J.R. Lowell

9 Ramadas, V. (2014). Dr BR Ambedkar as an educational and social

reformer. (retrieved from ietd.inflibnet.ac.in)

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defines democracy as a form of society in which ‘every

man has a chance and knows he has it’. Historically,

caste-based exclusions and violence hampered the life

chances of Dalits, Adivasis and other sections. In order

to ‘remove’ these obstacles and ensure ‘participation’

and ‘representation’ to these groups, reservations were

implemented initially for SCs/STs and later for the

OBCs. Dr. Oniel Biswas10 points out that articles 15(3)

(4), 16(4) of the Constitution upholds the ‘right to

equalization’ of historically excluded groups.

Affirmative action is a positive response to this right. In

other words, reservation was not envisaged on the basis

of ‘economic status’ or ‘proportionate representation’ of

any group. It was aimed at alleviating the disabilities

caused by caste.

Bhagwan Das notes that reservations naturally

antagonized those sections of the society who have been

enjoying the monopoly of power. Several articles in

favor of reservations were challenged every now and

then in the court of law.

Similarly, the implementation of affirmative action in

education and employment has been dismal. As per the

2011 socio-economic caste census less than 4% of the

central government employees are SCs and STs. The

case is no different in the case of OBCs.

10 Biswas Oniel (1998). ‘Reservation: legal Perspectives’, Blumoon

Books: New Delhi

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Let us now focus on IITs, their history and political

economy.

History of IITs and the political economy of

Brahmanical Merit

The history of the IITs is as old as the history of

independent India. Hence, one may convincingly say

that those responsible for the establishment of these

institutions of unjust practices were none other than

those who came to lead the country after the British i.e.

the upper caste politicians and industrialists. There

remains no doubt that the IITs were born in response to

the growing aspirations for ‘development’ felt by this

‘community’ of newly – independent but already -

privileged castes.

On the initiative of Ardeshir Dalal, director, Tata Iron

and Steel Company, the GoI appointed a Committee,

under the chairmanship of Nalini Ranjan Sarkar in 1945

“to survey the entire question of Technical Education in

India and to make definite and concrete

recommendations in this respect as the Post-War

Reconstruction plan”11. Owing to the Sarkar Committee

recommendations five IITs were set up within the

11Saha, S. K., & Ghosh, S. (2012). COMMISSIONS & COMMITTEES ON

TECHNICAL EDUCATION IN INDEPENDENT INDIA: AN APPRAISAL.

Indian Journal of History of Science , pp. 109-138.

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period of 1951-63 (Kanpur, Kharagpur, Bombay, Madras

and Delhi). J.L. Nehru, who always expressed a need for

development of science and technology, congratulated

the country after setting up of the IITs. He envisioned

that the IIT system would over time "provide scientists

and technologists of the highest calibre who would

engage in research, design and development to help

building the nation towards self-reliance in her

technological needs”12.

The IITs were accorded the status of institutions of

‘national importance’ as they were deemed necessary

for the country’s development in terms of providing

high skilled technicians and engineers for designing

projects like the massive dams, industrial ventures and

power plants. The IIT pass outs became prominent

venture capitalists, entrepreneurs creating one invention

after the other, and creating or becoming multi nationals

themselves. Shaking hand with global capitalism, the

IITs contributed whole heartedly to promoting it within

the country and across the globe. The demand of IITians

grew tremendously within the country and across the

world. In a 1998 article of the Businessweek the IITs were

12 Murli, K. (2003, February 1). The IIT Story : Issues and

Concerns . Frontline .

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praised for creating "out of limited resources, a class of

executives and entrepreneurs who manage to combine

technical brilliance with great management skills... In

many ways the IIT grad is the hottest export India has

ever produced.'' It has also been observed that over the

years there has been an increase in number of IITians

who migrate to other countries and settle there.

Over time, the true nature of IITs came to the fore. The

IITs advertized themselves to the world not as

educational institutions but as factories capable of

manufacturing rich people. IIT students were

‘developed’ in order to create a highly competitive and

efficient market product. It has even been suggested that

the IITs have, perhaps, “produced more millionaires per

capita than any other undergraduate academic

institution in the world” (ibid). The IITs failed to make

any headlines for constructive research in any social

field and there remained no example to cite the

contribution of these IITs in bringing about any

meaningful social transformation. Education as being a

means to money and not knowledge is epitomized

when one looks at the structure and functioning of these

IITs. Narayan Murthy, an ex-IITian himself expressed

the failure of these institutions when he said that, "Our

youngsters have not done much impactful research

work despite being equal to their counterparts in

intellect and energy in Western universities," he has

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said. (News link -

http://www.firstpost.com/business/old-mans-knockout-

punch-nrn-murthys-comments-on-indian-inventions-

are-an-eye-opener-2345372.html)

These factories, were since the beginning rewarded

heavily by the government not only in terms of

humungous central funding and subsidies but were also

assured full autonomy in terms of deciding their

administration, curriculum and functioning. A legal

sanction was provided to this autonomy through The

Institutes of Technology Act, 1961 which laid down the

rules for governing of the IITs specifically. A

considerably large amount has been allocated to the IITs

in comparison to other institutions of higher education

within the budget earmarked for the education sector.

The 1999-2000 Union Budget accounts for Rs 4380 crores

(revised) on 'secondary and higher education'

(Government of India 2000). Of this, Rs 499.18 crores went

towards the six IITs. In fact, if one would compare the

amounts allocated to the IITs vs amount allocated to

primary education, one feels that similar investments in

the latter would probably give much better results and

be more equitable too.

These prospering factories have off-shoots of their own.

The demand for IITians has given birth to a hub of

coaching classes that ‘train’ students to crack the IIT

entrance examinations. The coaching centers mostly

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charge a fee of anything between 1-2 lacs. Such is the

demand of these coaching classes that a few of these

centers have their own entrance examinations to

evaluate who is capable of preparing for IIT entrance.

Hence, the IITs have proved successful in strengthening

all kinds of hierarchies based on caste, class and gender.

The under- representation of dalits, adivasis and women

in these institutions has been a well known fact. This

leaves us with a very important question of why the IITs are

of ‘national importance’ after all? Why are they important if

their real contribution is only in terms of accruing profits to a

very small section of people and in strengthening the

hierarchies?

The only possible answer that we could see is – IITs are

important not for the ‘nation’ but for a certain set of

people who have enough power to keep them going and

for a certain cause. Who are these people? What do they

want?

The IITs have been since the beginning owned, run and

administered by the most privileged sections of this

country. If one were to look at the past records, one

finds that most of the Directors and individuals in the

esteemed posts have been elite Brahmins or other upper

caste men. The IITs in its initial years were exempt from

the need of having to implement the reservation policy.

However, after the movement by dalit, adivasi and

bahujan students the affirmative policy was

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implemented in the IITs in the year 1973 i.e. 27 years

after they were established first. And even after the

implementation of reservations since more than 40

years, one does not find many SC/ST teachers and

professors in these institutions. Although, contrastingly

one finds that the lower rank administrative posts are

found filled with the employees belonging to the

SC/ST/OBC categories. A report by Dalit Media

Network, Chennai Notes the following:

“One basic anomaly is overlooked. If for 25 years IITs

have been implementing reservation for students,

why is it that hardly any dalits and adivasis hold

faculty positions? Technically, the IITs want to show

that they are indeed satisfying the dalit/adivasi need

to be part of what is an elite setup at the student level,

but in effect they are producing (dalit and adivasi)

technologists and engineers who will not be recruited

by these very institutions. However, in lower-end

posts, ('Class IV' employees), the scenario is

predictably the opposite. In 1983, there were in all 800

dalit employees in IIT-M. Of these, 796 were

scavengers. Here the Brahmans staked no claim.

There were four dalit LDCs. ('Caste system is not

merely a division of labour. It is also a division of

labourers' [Ambedkar 1987, 66, emphasis original].)”

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13Dalit Media Network, Chennai. (2001). Dalits at the Indian

Institutes of Technology. PUCL Bulletin

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The IITs not only segregate, they also intensify the

difference between the value given to mental and

physical labor.

The IITians are not only trained in making money but

also taught to contribute in the process of development.

The IITs have given their due share in Indian

development model which is based on marginalizing

the already marginalized communities. In line with its

present agenda of development, the government gets

entrepreneurs and engineers who work tirelessly on

implementing projects of “national importance”. While

talking to Vimal Bhai, an activist working on the issue of

displacement due to big dams in Uttarakhand, says that

the IIT, Roorkee has given sanction to the most

hazardous dams in Uttarakhand which have displaced

large numbers of dalit/adivasi populations. All across

the country the projects have been created mostly at the

cost of lives and livelihoods of these communities and

the IITs have never made a statement against that.

One may also ask about how in a democracy like India such

an institution sustains itself? The answer is autonomy! The

autonomy practiced by the IITs requires special attention.

In an article in Business Line (June 3, 2002), former IIT

Madras Director P.V. Indiresan suggests that the IITs

have succeeded because "by and large, they have

enjoyed the three basic freedoms of an educational

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institution: freedom to choose whom to teach, who will

teach, and what to teach. The IITs also enjoy full cost

budgetary support. The IITs will remain successful so

long as these amenities continue."

The IITs have a huge benefit of having minimum

obstructions from the government. And yet the IITs

desire even more. In a recent report of the Anil

Kakodkar committee report of 2012 few parts of it are

cited here14:

“Established by the Parliament of India as institutions

of national importance, the IITs presently enjoy a

considerable degree of academic autonomy and a

reasonable degree of administrative autonomy but

much lower levels of financial autonomy.

They have the potential to demonstrate their

capability as world-class institutions provided they

are entrusted with a higher degree of administrative

and financial autonomy than presently available, with

assurances of impeccable accountability.”

Further, it goes on to say that –

14 Kakodkar, A. (2011). Taking IITs to Excellence and Greater

Relevance - Report of Dr Anil Kakodkar Committee Appointed by

MHRD to Recommend Autonomy Measures to Facilitate IITs

Scaling Greater Heights. Delhi: Ministry of Human Resource

Development.

20

“While financial independence from Government was

strongly favoured, most felt that the IITs should do a

lot more to raise funds. They have suggested several

strategies for it, including generation of income from

IPR, effective and persistent fund-raising efforts,

industrial consultancy, joint ventures and even

“radical privatization” 32% suggested that IITs

should become self financing by increasing the tuition

fees. 71% favoured performance-based differential

pay for the faculty.”

Hence if the IITs had the freedom then they would

actually fund themselves from elsewhere. One can

easily guess that many elite class MNCs would be more

than happy to fund these IITs and in due time own

these institutes as well. This however, would require the

IITs to ‘radically’ privatize themselves. The IITs being

really influential institutions have significant

implications for the other institutions for higher

education and on larger discourse of privatization

within education sector. Other institutions of higher

technical education wish to follow suit and become a

‘brand’. In the committee report it says the following:

“Brand IIT: A large majority agreed that “Brand IIT”,

created mostly by the success of the alumni, is a

“good thing”. But the IITs need to do much more to

promote, sustain and leverage the Brand, and to make

it truly world class. Their suggestions in this regard

included more emphasis on publications and IPR

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generation, more industry collaboration and techno-

entrepreneurial ventures, holding international

technology/student festivals and marketing

achievements and current initiatives using, if

necessary, professional agencies. Periodic review of

the structure and pattern of JEE to ensure true quality

and caution against expansion at the expense of

quality (including reservations) also figured in the

responses.

Most were against “diversification” to include non-

technical disciplines (arts, law, medicine, etc.) for fear

of brand dilution; instead they suggested partnering

with reputed institutions in those fields.”

Of various types of Higher Education institutes, 47 per

cent are State Universities, 20 per cent Deemed

Universities1 , 16 per cent Private Universities, 7 per

cent Central Universities, and other 10 per cent

comprising of various Institutes of National Importance

and other university level institutes (UGC, 2012).15

An article by K.M. Joshi notes the following:

“Quiet obviously most of this growth of private

higher education has happened in the more

marketable professional courses like engineering,

medicine, management, computer applications, etc.

ranging between 50 per cent to 95 per cent of the

15 joshi, k. (2013). indian higher education : some reflections.

intellectual economics , pp. vol 7, no.1(15), p.42-53.

22

private institutions… Trends show that of the various

forms of institutes of higher education that exists, the

number supported by public funding have stagnated

by growth (like the central and state universities,

aided colleges, etc.) and rather the numbers with

private funding have witnessed a speedily rising

growth (like the private universities, deemed

universities, unaided colleges, etc.)”

The article also shares an observation that “the Central

government spending is lopsided towards central

universities and centers of excellence serving hardly 3

per cent of the total students.”

Hence the IITs shout out loud asking for autonomy,

privatization and less or no reservation and more

importantly maintaining a certain concentration of

knowledge with the privileged sections of the society.

One can undeniably identify the nexus between the

Brahmanical elite, market, state and its public funded

institutions. This nexus operates against Dalits, Adivasis

and Bahujans both inside and outside the campuses.

Under the garb of merit and autonomy, IIT perpetuates

a system based on inequalities.

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Objective of the Fact Finding Mission

Through various newspaper reports, it came to our

notice that 73 students were expelled from IIT (Roorkee)

after the completion of their first year in different

undergraduate programmes. It also came to our notice

that 90% of the expelled students come from SC/ST and

OBC backgrounds.

To delve into the facts relating to these expulsions a

team was constituted by the National Campaign for

Dalit Human Rights (NCDHR), Delhi who visited IIT,

Roorkee for 3 days from 30th July - 1st August 2015. The

team consisted of Anoop Kumar (Independent

Researcher and Educationist), Dilip Mandal (Former

Managing Editor, India Today), Gurinder Azad (Centre

for Social Equity and Inclusion), Nidhin Donald

(National Dalit Movement for Justice - NCDHR) and

Shefali (Delhi Solidarity Group). The team met with the

students who have been expelled, students in the senior

batch and the administration.

The objectives of the FF visit were as follows:

a) Documenting the facts pertaining to the

expulsion of 73 students (which include more

than 60 students from marginalized sections).

24

Such an exercise would include recording

institutional explanations and testimonies of

affected students.

b) Reviewing the presence or absence of support

infrastructure for SC/ST/OBC students by

recording the experiences of students and the

institution. We would also review the

participation of students and student's bodies in

the decision making processes.

c) Understanding whether SC/ST/OBC students

face any discrimination, inside and outside the

classroom/hostels and administration.

d) Recording the institutional commitment to

affirmative action and steps taken by the

institution to actualize these commitments.

As civil society organizations play a very important role

in the upkeep of constitutional promises and

democracy, such a fact finding is important in the larger

interest of marginalized sections of the society.

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Immediate Background

On 15th June 2015, IIT Roorkee, the oldest engineering

institute in Asia, released an official memorandum

expelling 73 1st year students from BTech/IMT/MSc.16

This notice was released during the summer vacation

when students are generally not on campus. None of the

expelled students were officially informed about their

expulsion through e-mail or speed post. They were

informed mostlyby their seniors. The immediate reason

for this mass expulsion as explained by the official

memorandum and later by IIT (Roorkee) in

Uttarakhand High Court stems from rule 33 (1) (a) of

the UG Ordinance and Regulations 2014-15. The rule

states that -

'The enrolment of a student in a programme,

shall stand terminated if he/she fails to earn

the minimum number of credits specified at

different yearly levels in the programme as

given in Appendix -J and fails to secure

minimum CGPA of 5.00, notwithstanding the

fact that the student has or has not been put

under academic probation [….]'

16 See Annexure (a)

26

The rule of 'minimum 5.00 C.G.P.A' to continue one's

course in IIT (Roorkee) was introduced only after the

56th Senate meeting held on 10th July 2014. (The Senate

is the highest decision making body in matters of academics.

The Senate members include all faculty members designated

as 'Professors'. The Director is the Chairperson of the Senate.

One needs to point out that this rule was not updated in the

official website of IIT (Roorkee) at the time of the fact finding).

The preceding rule replaced the earlier rule of an

average of 'minimum 4 C.G.P.A'. Students pointed out

that the new rule book was distributed only in the third

month of their course work, without any meaningful

orientation.

Several media reports17 pointed out that 90.4% of the

expelled students belonged to reserved categories. The

breakup of the expelled students as per their category is

as follows:

Total Expelled Students 73

ST 31

SC 23

PD 4

OBC 8

17See : http://www.jantakareporter.com/india/90-4-of-iit-roorkees-

expelled-students-were-from-reserved-category-decision-unfair-for-

all/6527 ; Also see reports in the online portal ' Youth ki Awaaz'.

27

General 7

As per the JEE Advanced Report, 1050 students were

admitted in the year 2014-15. Out of which 160 students

belonged to SC category while 79 belonged to ST

category. Thus, the institutional decision to expel 54

SC/ST students meant a decrease of 15% and 42% in the

total numbers of SC and ST students respectively.

Similarly, this decision meant a decrease of more than

50% in the total number of PD students (4 out of 7).

Litigation and Judgments

To challenge the institutional decision, students

approached the Uttarakhand High Court with

individual writ petitions. 38 writ petitions were filed in

the High Court. The writ petitions broadly challenged

the interpretation of specific rules and regulations18 in the

UG Ordinance and Regulations 2014. No arguments

were made to highlight the social composition of the

expelled students. The first judgment on the writ

petitions by Honourable Judge Sudhanshu Dhulia,

dated 15th July 2015, permitted students with backlogs

to appear for re-examinations. However, the judgment

added that a decision on the re-registration of the

18 The Regulations include Sections 2, 18,33,34 of the UG

Ordinance and Regulations 2014-15. See Annexure (b).

28

students would be made only after the institute explains

its stand in a counter affidavit.

The next judgment pronounced on 22nd July 2015 by

Honourable Judge Alok Singh upheld the institute's

'autonomy' in implementing 'prescribed standards'

which are supposedly aimed at ensuring 'excellence'.

The interpretation of the rules by IIT was held as

paramount and final. Thus, the court categorically

rejected the plea of the students. It upheld the

institutional decision of expulsion. It is appalling to note

that nowhere in the judgment is there any mention on

the social composition of the students. However, the

Alok Singh judgment points out that the petitioners did

not themselves 'question' the 'validity' of such rules.

Thus, the court took a role of 'non-interference'. In the

judgment, one is taken by surprise to note that the High

Court of Uttarakhand does not see any precedence in

the Avinash Singh Bagri & Ors vs Registrar IIT

DelhiJudgment uttered by K.G. Balakrishnan, P.

Sathasivam and B.S. Chauhan on August 12, 2009.The

judgment clearly states that:

[…] Article 46 of the Constitution of India

enjoins upon the State to promote with

special care the educational and

economic interests of the weaker sections

of the people and protect them from

social injustice and all forms of

exploitation. These socially and

29

economically backward categories are to

be taken care of at every stage even in the

specialized institutions like IITs. They

must take all endeavors by providing

additional coaching and bring them up at

par with general category students

However, the scope of Article 46 was neither invoked

nor expanded in the Alok Singh Judgment. The next

judgment on the special appeals came on 28th July 2015.

In this judgment, again, the High Court dealt only with

the technicalities of interpreting the rule book. Quoting

precedence, Hon'ble K.M. Joseph C.J. and Hon'ble V.K.

Bist explained how one should understand the use of

'and' and 'or' in the rule book.

Students time and again approached the administration

with mercy pleas and requests. They organized peaceful

rallies and meetings to articulate their grievances.

However, the administration persistently rationalized

its decision in the name of 'Brand IIT'.

30

How do we understand these expulsions?

This mass 'exodus' of students from historically excluded

backgrounds in IIT (Roorkee) is not an isolated incident. IITs and

other educational institutions of National importance, have time

and again manufactured such incidents. These range from drop

outs, expulsions to psychological disorders and suicides. In

Anoop Kumar's report titled ' The Death of Merit' (based on the

2009 expulsion of 12 SC/ST students in IIT- Delhi), he points out

that on an average SC/ST communities loose out nearly 62% of

the total allotted IIT seats every year, due to several reasons such

as unfilled seats at the time of admissions, drop outs, expulsions

etc.. He further observes that the 'magnitude of such loss' should

be contextualized in the 'inhuman exclusion of Dalits and

Adivasis in very sphere of life'. One cannot forget the suicide of

20 year old Manish Kumar Guddolian, a second year SC

student in Department of Computer Science & Information

Technology, at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee.

He committed 'suicide' after jumping off from 5th floor of his

hostel on 6th February, 2011. He was intensely troubled by the

caste-abuses by his classmates, hostel warden and administration.

Dalit suicides in All India Institute of Medical Sciences led to the

formation of a special committee headed by former UGC

Chairman Dr. Sukhadeo Thorat, to frame guidelines for inclusive,

equitable and non-discriminating campuses.

Thus, one needs to bear in mind the systemic resentment against

SC, ST and OBC students in spaces of higher education.

31

Manufacturing Failure: Interaction with

affected students

On 30th July 2015, the FFT visited IIT, Roorkee.

However, we could not enter the college campus as we

did not have a 'credible' reference. The expelled

students who had come to receive us could not provide

their ID Cards due to their expulsion and genuine fears

of administrative backlash. Thus we thought it would be

appropriate to hold our meetings and discussions

outside the campus.

Soon after, in a private hotel room, near the campus, we

met nearly 40 expelled students (including three girl

students) from SC/ST and OBC backgrounds. To set the

context, Anoop Kumar, one of the FFT members,

explained the aims and objectives of the FFT. He also

spoke about prior instances of expulsions in IIT

campuses across the country. He quoted the example of

SC/ST expulsions in IIT (Delhi) in the year 2009. He

shared the experience of expelled SC/ST students from

IIT (Delhi).

The quiet gathering swiftly turned conversant as they

could closely relate to the context set by Anoop. They

pointed out several factors which affect them on the

campus. They questioned the '5 C.G.P.A ' rule which led

32

to their expulsion. They spoke effectually about

experiences of caste-based discrimination on campus.

They highlighted the lack of institutional mechanisms to

address their problems which emerge from their socio-

economic backgrounds. They described how English

becomes a major hurdle in classrooms. They questioned

the teaching methods of the faculty, who, according to

them, fail to cater to their needs.

In the following sections we will go through each of

these factors in some detail. While the sections below

compile insights from the group discussion. 2 separate

boxed sections discuss the social backgrounds of the

students and the institutional problems they identified

in their individual interviews and biographical

accounts. The second boxed section is a case study of

Pramod (name changed), one of the expelled students.

Rules which manufacture failure

Most of the students highlighted that they were not

oriented about the changed rule at the time of their

admission. In fact, the orientation programme did not

provide any rationale or explanation on the course

work, distribution of credits or the system of relative

marking. Students pointed out that they enter IITs on

the basis of different merit lists. In other words, students

belonging to reserved categories are admitted on the

basis of separate merit lists and cut offs. However, IIT

33

operates on a system of relative marking. In this system,

individual students are marked on the basis of the

performance of the entire class. For example, if the class

on an average scores 75/100, 75 is held as 6.5 C.G.P.A.

Students scoring less than 75 are assigned grade points

as per their relative distance from the average marks of

the class.

Students explain that such a system is rationalized in

the name of 'healthy competition'. They point out that

in such a system individual progress is outweighed by

collective scores.

Most of the expelled students had completed the

required number of credits stipulated by the Institute

and passed in all the courses. Yet they were expelled.

This exposed a very curious situation. One of the

students explained this situation. He pointed out that

the minimum grade point required to pass in an exam is

4 C.G.P.A. By this criterion most of the expelled

students had cleared all their courses. However, the

Institute imposed the additional criterion of an average

of minimum 5 C.G.P.A. to re-register in the next

academic year. Thus, even after passing in all the

courses students (22 students in all) were expelled.

One of them highlighted that students with several

backlogs were allowed to re-register as they fulfilled the

additional criterion of 5 C.G.P.A. He wishfully added

that if he would have failed even in a single subject, he

34

would have been eligible for re-registration. He said,

“Pass hona ek gunha hain!” (To pass all subjects is a crime!).

If a student fails in a subject, s/he can appear for a re-

examination in the next semester. Students are

supposed to pay Rs. 1000/ subject for re-examinations.

However, students point out that irrespective of how

well they perform in the re-examination, they can score

only the minimum grade point (i.e. 4 C.G.P.A.) as per

the rules of IIT (Roorkee). Students added that IIT does

not provide any opportunity to improve one's scores.

Instead of providing incentives to improve one's scores,

IIT punishes them by maintaining their grade points in

the border line.

35

A Note on the Social Backgrounds of Expelled students

As an exercise, we asked the students to prepare their

biographical sketches (26 in all). It was a simple and useful

tool to understand the family composition, educational

backgrounds and experiences of students. Majority of the

students in conversations and their biographical accounts

mentioned that they were first generation learners in Higher

Education. A significant number came from Dalit, Adivasi

and Bahujan agrarian families, with parents who are either

illiterate or have hardly completed their schooling. A

whooping majority came from Hindi medium schools, thus

they found IIT classroom instructions highly

incomprehensible. While many students reached IIT by

devoted self-study, others took loans to attend coaching classes

and clear the entrance test. Often students and their parents

were ready to bear the cost of the loan amount (in many cases

as high as Rs. 5, 00,000/-) with the hope that they would

repay their loans once they earn a job. However, as one of the

students opined in his biographical account, 'IIT is not

interested in our hopes!'

36

English: A Major Hurdle

In the group discussion, students unanimously pointed

out that lack of proficiency in English is one of the

biggest hurdles faced by them. Among the students, a

significant number completed their schooling in

vernacular medium government schools. While there

were students from English or semi-English mediums,

almost all of them came from Non-English milieus. In

other words, they socialized and conversed in regional

languages all their lives. They even cleared their JEE

entrance tests in Hindi language.

In such a situation, student point out, that 'fast' lectures

in English is highly incomprehensible. In their initial

days at IIT, an English proficiency test was conducted

for them. The test consisted of English grammar, make

the sentences and paragraph comprehensions. The test

did not 'test' them on any English which is relevant to

their everyday coursework. After the test, students were

grouped as 'basic' and 'advanced'. All the 73 expelled

students belonged to the basic group. They were

subsequently given a few highly insufficient workshops

on English proficiency. English relevant to their

coursework was not a part of any of these classes. The

campus does not have an English Language Lab.

37

Disengaging and Discriminating Pedagogies

Students effectively pointed out that teachers do not

cater to their needs in the classroom. For example, most

students come from educational backgrounds where

science and mathematics were taught in blackboards

and not in projectors using slides. Many students

pointed out that the use of projectors has severely

hampered their abilities to understand concepts.

Students pointed out that the use of microphone by

teachers to address the big classroom was a very new

experience for them. It took them a while to understand

their new situations. According to them, senior

professors often spoke over the microphone,

uninterrupted, moving from one slide to the other. This

often left them in a state of perpetual confusion in the

classroom.

While talking about the coursework, a few students

highlighted experiences of discrimination within the

classroom. There have been instances when students

who approached teachers with their doubts were asked

their 'category' or JEE Ranks. In fact, one of the students

recollected his experience with an upper-caste senior.

When he approached this senior with a doubt he

remarked that 'being an ST he would not understand the

concept'. Students also recollected experiences of

discriminations in the laboratories. One of them

38

specifically pointed out his experience of attending C++

practical sessions. This student did not have any know-

how about computers as he came from socio-economic

circumstances where computers were inconceivable. In

the first semester, without any background support,

students like him were expected to do complicated

programming assignments in the computer lab. Quite

naturally, such situations would transfix a student into

perpetual confusions in the lab. The teacher was so

overwhelmed by his confusions that he ultimately

remarked ' why do people like even come to IITs?’ After the

expulsions students met various authorities with their

mercy plea. They also approached a senior faculty in

civil engineering department in search of support.

However, this senior faculty after enquiring about the

categories of the students retorted that it was a good

decision to get rid of ‘category’ students.

Support mechanisms: A story of false promises

Students spoke in detail about the lack of any support

mechanisms to address any of their requirements. While

the institute officially maintains a narrative of numerous

support mechanisms, in actual experience none of the

mechanisms are operational. Students underscored that

(a) There are no bridge courses in English which are

relevant to their coursework (b) When the institute

realizes that students are scoring low grade points, they

issue a public notice with the name of such students,

39

declaring that they are on academic probation. When we

tried to gather from students the meaning of an

academic probation, students themselves were unable to

explain. Ideally in an academic probation students are

expected to receive special coaching classes and

mentorship. However, none of these mechanisms were

meaningfully provided. The special coaching classes

were non-existent and the mentorship notices were put

up in the tail end of the semester. One of the students

pointed out that academic probation is nothing but a

'warning'. The administration shames the students by

putting up their names in notice boards and thereby

builds tremendous pressure on individual students to

score better. (c) The SC/ST Cell which should provide

key support is almost dysfunctional. In fact very few

students knew about the existence and mandate of such

a Cell. (d) The problems faced by differently abled

students also became a focal point in the discussion.

Differently-abled students described their experiences.

They highlighted that the campus is not disable-

friendly.

40

The Story of a Topper

Pradeep Kumar Meena Civil Engineering student was

expelled on 15th June 2015 along with other 72 students. He

was the topper in ST-PD category in the IIT entrance exam

2014. He belongs to the ST category and is a 'person with

disability'. Coming from an extremely humble background,

Pradeep made it to IIT (Roorkee) by sheer hard work and

determination. His parents are non-literate, making him a

first generation learner. The family had to incur a heavy loan

to finance his coaching (Rs. 1, 50,000), with the hope that an

IIT education would change their lives. In IIT-Roorkee he had

to face discrimination at multiple levels. Since his basic

education was in Hindi, Pradeep found it really difficult to

cope up with the course work and classroom teaching. Due to

lack of any meaningful support mechanisms such as special

coaching classes, English remedial classes, mentorship

Pradeep found himself in the midst of many hurdles.

However, the biggest challenges emerged in the practical

sessions. Though he is medically incapable of standing

for more than 10 minutes, in the practical sessions he

was forced to stand continuously for two to three

hours. Though he informed the concerned faculty about

his problem, no action was taken. In fact the faculty

categorically told him that nothing can be done! This

episode deeply demoralized him. It also had an irreparable

impact on his scores. The practicals constitute of 8 credits. He

scored dismally low in these practicals, making this ST-PD

topper a very 'weak' student. While all 73 students were re-

admitted on 3rd August 2015, Pradeep and six others were

expelled again the very next day on grounds of low scores.

41

Precautions only after the ‘Flood’:

Interaction with administration

The FFT tried to contact various officials at IIT to

document their responses on the expulsions. But most

officials denied us an appointment, except the Registrar.

The office bearers kept referring us to one senior official

or the other on the grounds of not being “authorized” to

talk on the matter. Very little telephonic conversations

with the officials took place.

The Deputy Registrar, Raman Lal asked us to contact

the Dean (Academics) and the Faculty Advisor to SC/ST

students. He added that we may also contact the Deputy

Director because the Director was out of station during

our visit.

The Deputy Director, Professor Vinod Kumar said that

owing to a tight schedule he could not provide us an

appointment. On being asked to comment on the matter

of expulsions he said that newspapers have already

captured the episode and the High Court has

pronounced its judgment. He further added that after

admissions, there is no differentiation among students

in academic activities. Irrespective of whichever

category a student belongs to, the students attend the

same classes and are given equal treatment. He also

42

asserted that in his knowledge the students did not

belong to Hindi medium background.

The Faculty Advisor to SC/ST students, Mr. M.K.

Baruah agreed to meet with the FF initially and even

gave an appointment.. However, he soon lost

confidence and added that the FFT must first meet up

with the Dean (Student Welfare) and only after that he

would be able to meet us as he is not “authorized” to

comment on the matter. He said that the issue was not

of SC/ST students alone as even non – reserved category

students had been expelled. He said that he was neither

a Senate member nor a Professor and was not part of the

decision. He, in fact, got to know about it from the

newspaper. After the students came to meet him he

helped them write a mercy plea to the Director. He

further asked us to contact the Dean (Academics), Mr.

Pramod Aggarwal.

When we called up the Dean (Academics) Mr. Pramod

Aggarwal he asked us to talk to the Registrar as he was

the only one “authorized” to talk to journalists. We tried

to get in touch with the Dean (Student welfare) but did

not succeed and had almost lost hope of getting any

appointments with the administration officials when we

made one last call to the Registrar, Mr. Prashant Garg.

He agreed to meet us for ten minutes after he had

already tried to refer us back to the Dean (Academics)

43

and also asserted that the issue was a “students” issue

and not a “SC/ST students” issue.

'It is only after a Flood that we take precautions!' -

Conversation with the Registrar

The FFT met the Registrar, Mr. Prashant Garg at the

Registrar office. The Registrar said that the expulsion of

73 students happened due to carelessness and lax

attitude of the students. He said that IIT does not

differentiate among its students after the admission and

considers everyone as "equal" in the classroom. He

further added that category students enter IITs using

"relaxed" cut offs. After coming to IIT they often cannot

withstand the competition with the non- category

students. He said that in past years, there have been

around 20-25 cases in which students who reached the

end of 4 years they did not have the required CGPA for

placements or to obtain a degree. According to him,

those students themselves argued that it would have

been better if they had been expelled in the beginning

itself rather than after 4 years. In response to this, the

current rule of minimum 5 CGPA was introduced to

make sure that the "weak" students are removed in the

initial years of the degree itself. The Registrar stressed

that the “brand” of IIT was degrading day by day due to

which the IITians are finding it increasingly difficult to

find a “high paying job”. He expressed his concern

regarding how in coming years the IITians will find it

44

difficult to find even a 5000 rupees job to do. He said

that the standard needs to be maintained and hence the

administration is getting stricter owing to which the

present steps are being taken. When the FFT asked

about the disproportionately less number of faculties

from SC/ST background in IIT, he said that a standard

has to be maintained while hiring the faculty as well.

On the issue of infrastructure and help for the

differently abled students, the Registrar said that if

students are academically weak then they are put on

academic probation. The course advisor finds out the

weak area and gives counseling to the student.

When asked whether the Institute and its faculty should

be held responsible for such mass expulsions and

'underperformance', the Registrar answered that the

Institute is introspecting and will take necessary steps.

He explained the current expulsions using the analogy

of a flood. He highlighted that is only after a flood (read

mass expulsion) that we take precautions.

45

Rules which ex-communicate: Interactions

with senior students

The team interacted with some students of senior

batches as well. They gave a very sharp critique of the

present CGPA Rule. They explained that given that

there is relative marking hence there would always be a

few students who would fall in the category of below 5

CGPA every year, irrespective of how hard they work.

Every year the lowest ranking students would be kicked

out of the institution. They clearly presented how the

present rule is mathematically flawed. They argued that

such a rule would progressively eliminate most of the

SC, ST, PD and OBC students over the years.

The students also told us how they were not prey to this

rule and there were many cases where if the student

was not able to achieve 5 CGPA then he/she could take a

year or two extra, depending upon his degree and

achieve the required CGPA. This proves beyond doubt

that the number of people who actually got degree by

the end of the stipulated course period was more as the

current rule was non-existent for them.

The students also told us about some other

policies/rules of college which might prove to be huge

financial burden on the students. One such rule states

that in case a student is not able to clear a backlog in a

46

certain subject within two years then the student has to

pay Rs.45,000 per subject to apply for that paper again19.

This means that if the student has by some chance 2

papers left to clear then she will have to pay a

humungous amount of 90,000 to apply for a re-

examination. Again such a re-examination will only

promise the student minimum grade points.

Eliminating the Public life of Dalit, Adivasi and

Bahujan students

Another set of rules which operate in IIT has serious

implications on SC, ST and OBC students. In the

students' affair council, the official student body of IIT-

Roorkee, only those students with high grade points can

contest elections. For example, to contest for the highest

post (i.e. the President) the candidate should have a

minimum of 7.5 C.G.P.A. Similarly, only students with

more than 6.5 C.G.P.A can head college festivals and

other events. Students scoring less than that can always

work 'under' the heads. The class representatives are the

top scorers in every class. If a student wishes to stay

back in the hostel for a project work, he/she would be

eligible only if they have a C.G.P.A of 7.5.

The seniors argued that such rules are not only

discriminatory but also eliminate any possibilities for

most of the SC, ST, PD and OBC students to develop

19See Annexure (b)

47

their full personality and participate actively in the

public life of the Institute.

48

Under institutional dread: Present Status of the students

A Senate meeting was held at IIT on 3rdof August 2015 in which it

was decided that all the students who had been expelled in July are

being granted one more chance to continue education at the institute

provided that the students fulfill the following difficult conditions

(a) a minimum attendance of 75% in every subject (b) No backlogs

in semesters or at the end of Ist year (c) A minimum C.G.P.A. of 5

points (d) A yearlong academic probation (e) Clear all subjects once

again. With these conditions, students would continue at IIT

(Roorkee) under constant psychological pressure and fear. The

students were relieved to know that they were at least not going to

get expelled20.

However, the following day when the students went to take

readmission a few of them were refused re-registration. It turned

out later that 7 of the students (6 of them belong to

SC/ST/OBC and PD categories) had been expelled even after

the previous days' notice and were not informed about same.

This is an act of extreme malevolence by the administration

and reflects the authoritative nature of IIT (Roorkee). It is yet

another example of arbitrary decisions taken overnight

without any concern for the social and psychological cost it

may incur. The Director has denied meeting the expelled

students. It should be noted that the Director has not met the

affected students even once.

20 See Annexure (c)

49

Observations

A. Lack of Institutional Support and Infrastructure

for Students from Diverse Backgrounds:

There is a lack of proper orientation to

the category students at beginning of the

semester.

The necessary support to students like

English language classes, summer

coaching classes, slow tracking

programme announced by the

administration at the time of the

orientation were not fulfilled.

The evaluation period of one year is too

less for them to be able to match up to the

grades which are easily achievable by

most non- category students. Many

quoted examples of students who scored

4.8 CGPA in the first year but could

improve their scores by the time they

reached in the final years of the

programme.

The remedial classes were never

provided. However, the documents

submitted by IIT in the Honorable High

Court stated that students were notified

50

but none attended the remedial classes.

(Confirm)

Students' access to the institutional

bodies meant for grievance redressal is

close to nil and mostly these bodies are

dysfunctional or powerless and express

insensitivity to students concerns.

Even when the teacher understands that

the student needs help, they ask the

students to take help from their seniors

or classmates. Any form of institutional

support is absent.

B. Undemocratic Ways of Decision Making and

Lack of Student Representation:

The college was trying to implement the

present grading system since past 3 years

and only this year it has succeeded

(Senate minutes, 2014). The students

were not properly notified about the

grading rules getting implemented in this

year and much confusion and lack of

awareness regarding the same was

expressed. They did not upload the

changed rules in the website.

When parents approached the authorities

on the rules and regulations of CGPA,

they were asked to visit the official

51

website. However, the website doesn't

include the latest rules and regulations

till the date on which fact finding has

been conducted.

C. Nature of “Premier” institutions such as IITs

and the inherent Discrimination:

The 5 CGPA rule employed here is in fact

a step undertaken to 'undo' the

affirmative impact of the reservation

policy. The resistance of such "premier"

institutes towards reservations is clear

where the institution tries to sell its

image of being "par excellence", so much

so that it remains accommodative

towards only the toughest and the most

competitive and inevitably the “most

privileged”.

Many of the students who have been

expelled have cleared all the papers as

per the passing CGPA of 4 points. On the

other hand, students who have failed in a

few subjects but could maintain an

average of above or marginally above 5

have been retained.

Most of the Professors in IIT (Roorkee)

had no clue that IIT entrance exams are

also conducted in Hindi.

52

Castiest comments made by one faculty

of the Civil Department were clearly

recollected by the students. He said, "I

am extremely happy that category students

are being kicked out, Category students are

incapable of understanding anything"

The rules are really arbitrary and

discriminatory. ex, the class topper will

be by default the class representative.

Students do not have any representation

in any decision making bodies.

The students said that most of the

teachers are not supportive and those

very few who do support are not doing

much to help the students.

53

Recommendations

The FFT recommends the following to ensure that the

rights of the students are safeguarded:

The expulsion of students is Anti –

Constitutional on all grounds and any rule that

attempts to declare any student a “failure” at the

end of first year itself should not be applied

anywhere in any university or college campus.

This implies that not only should the minimum 5

CGPA rule be removed but also that all 73

students should be re admitted to the institution.

There should in fact be no expulsions on account

of underperformance.

Public auditing of funds received under

Scheduled Caste Sub Plan (SCSP) and Scheduled

Tribe Sub Plan (STSP) should take place and the

institution should show how this amount is

being spent on students for students welfare21.

Taking into consideration that the students are

from varying socio-economic background the

students the institution should produce a proper

plan in which the issues of students from

21As per the budgetary allocations for the year 2015-16, IITs

are allocated nearly 450 crores from SCSP and STSP.

54

SC/ST/PD backgrounds will be dealt with. Need

based special language empowerment course

should be initiated everywhere.

For underperformance of the students, teachers

should also be held accountable.

The students from SC/ST/OBC backgrounds

should get representation in decision making

bodies and a Student Union should be

formulated within the campus.

The institution should have a

SC/ST/OBC/Minority student's cell which would

provide a reliable platform for the students to

express and redress their grievances and issues.

The campus should have Statues of Dr. B.R.

Ambedkar and Mahatma Jotiba Phule and other

anti-caste intellectuals in prime locations. These

spaces should be set free and students should be

allowed to sit in groups and discuss and

deliberate on issues which they deem relevant.

There should be compulsory refresher courses

for faculty orienting them on the issues of SC,

ST, OBC and PD students.

There should not be a monetary punishment for

non-clearance of examination. The institution

should not be allowed to charge a fee as high as

45,000 in any case whatsoever. For re-

examination the college should calculate and

charge an appropriate ‘affordable’ amount.

55

The Need to dismantle Brahmanical Merit

The fact finding team was startled by the scale of caste-

based discrimination, often camouflaged in the

language of grade points. While the primary mandate of

the Fact Finding team was to collect and analyze the

facts pertaining to the recent mass expulsion, several

other related issues came our way. The Institute has

persistently tried to build rules (including the regulation

which led to the expulsion) which are antithetical to the

constitutional commitment to affirmative action for

socially, culturally, economically excluded groups.

Though the Institute has offered another chance to most

of the expelled students, it has not repealed the

regulation. Thus, one can expect mass expulsions almost

every year. This systematic expulsion is orchestrated in

context where IITs have time and again failed to

understand the questions of the new student.

There is a need to dismantle the exclusionary value

systems which govern the rules and regulations of IITs.

In other words, we need to debrahmanize IITs, and re-

mould them in a way which is relevant to excluded

groups. IITs were formed on the basis of IIT Act, 1961.

The act puts forth the aims and objectives of IITs. These

institutes were supposed to produce knowledges

relevant to the nation and become excellent centers of

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learning. Whether IITs have achieved such progress for

the country is a separate investigation. A commentary

on it was done in the introduction of this report.

However, one can surely cast a shadow on the

'excellence' of IITs, looking at their murky ranks among

the top universities in the world. More importantly, the

total disregard for diversity on campus by

manufacturing such mass expulsions is an example of

how IITs have a limited understanding of quality and

excellence. Diversity brings with it new questions.

Without new questions there would be no innovations.

The top most universities in the world nurture this

diversity and thereby excellence by promoting racial

minorities and historically excluded sections of the

society. They run special programmes and develop

creative mechanisms to solve the problems of new

students. However, our country and its premiere

institutions derive 'excellence through expulsions'.

Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar held clear views on university

education, autonomy research and teaching. As the

member of the academic council and syndicate,

University of Mumbai, between 1935 and 1937,

Ambedkar very clearly laid down his views on several

issues. For example, he believed that the decision

making powers of the University (which is crucial for its

autonomy) should be distributed in three or four bodies

composed on not just faculty and teachers but also

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students, community members and political

representatives. He asserted that no university can

function if it is cut off from the community. However,

the present organization of Universities does not

envisage any specific role for the community or its

pluralistic needs. What we see in IIT Roorkee is an

absolute concentration of power in the hands of the

Director and the Senate. It should be noted that the

Senate is constituted of all the Professors. The Senate

has close to zero SCs or STs. It has no student’s

representation. Community representation is a far-

fetched dream!

Academic autonomy should be subject to the

constitutional mandate of representation and social

justice. Social justice is in no way an anathema to

autonomy or excellence. However, the basic premise of

excellence and merit in a caste society has always

overshadowed social justice.

Shailaja Paik22 points out that the Brahmanic idea of

knowledge production is anchored on the principle of

‘accumulation’ (Nyanasanchay). It is understood as an

isolated, individual exercise without any interface with

the community. On the other hand, anti-caste visions of

knowledge production are anchored on the principle of

22 Paik, S. (2009). Caste, Gender and Education in India: The Experience of

Dalit Women. Routledge.

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‘dissemination’ and creation of a learning community.

It imagines a strong interface with communities. It

upholds the right to represent one’s own cause.

Progressive social movements have conceived education

as a process which instills egalitarian citizenship and

dignity. Similarly, thoughts of Latin American and

Black Educationists also envisage a political role for

education, anchored in collective action. What we see

today in IITs is a philosophical conflict between groups

with opposing histories and visions. This fundamental

conflict plays out in the protocol, pedagogy and politics

of Higher Education.

In spaces like IIT, where ‘high skilled labor’ is

manufactured for global market-places, accumulation of

knowledge perfectly conspires with accumulation of

capital. Our society is not is awe of IITs because we have

witnessed a scientific revolution or dismantled

irrationalities of caste, religion, gender etc. On the other

hand, we associate ‘sanctity’ to IITs because they

personify temples of Brahmanic merit. Dismantling this

merit is inevitable for a just society.

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Annexure (a)

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61

Annexure (b)

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Annexure (c)