Row over caste bias: school says college students conduct was unsatisfactory

Pune’s Modern College of Arts, Science and Commerce, which has drawn criticism after former pupil Prem Birhade alleged caste discrimination for withholding a verification certificates, on Saturday mentioned that his conduct as a pupil was “unsatisfactory”. In a press release posted on social media, school principal Nivedita Ekbote rejected claims of bias and mentioned that the institute had earlier issued Mr. Birhade three advice letters and bona fide certificates.

A day earlier, The Hindu had reported concerning the allegations levelled by Mr. Birhade, a Dalit youth based mostly in London, saying {that a} U.Ok.-based firm had “requested my school if I had studied there. The school didn’t reply. Why? Because you don’t need us to get forward in life. This is the wrestle of me, my household, my group”.

In response to the principal’s assertion, Mr. Birhade mentioned he would file a defamation and harassment case towards the faculty, reiterating his cost of caste discrimination.

“If you need us to hold a brush and a pot round our necks now, that’s not going to occur,” he mentioned in a video assertion on Saturday.

Gajanan Ekbote, chairperson of the Progressive Education Society that runs the faculty and the principal’s father, dismissed the allegations as “false and baseless”.

“The earlier advice letters have been offered by school members who’ve now retired. When the request for a brand new advice letter got here, we mentioned we’d first must confirm the information, because the principal didn’t know him. There was no delay. The firm had not given us any deadline. We despatched the letter as quickly as we obtained a reminder,” he informed The Hindu.

Meanwhile, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi chief Prakash Ambedkar issued a press release criticising the faculty. “Why was he [Mr. Birhade] match for advice then, however now, he secured a spot overseas, the faculty out of the blue finds his character problematic? Let’s be trustworthy. This isn’t about self-discipline. This is about discomfort. Discomfort with a Dalit pupil daring to rise past the boundaries society quietly units for him!”

Mr. Ambedkar added, “What the faculty has achieved isn’t simply unethical, it’s a focused and discriminatory act! It’s educational sabotage rooted in caste prejudice! Instead of celebrating his success, they selected to dam his path. We must name this what it’s: caste-based discrimination. And it’s not simply incorrect, it’s felony!”