Home Minister Says Rohith Vemula Not A Dalit

The controversy surrounding the caste of deceased University Of Hyderabad Ph. D. scholar Rohith Vemula, who had recently committed suicide triggering off protests in various universities across the country, once again became a point of debate in the Telangana State Assembly on Saturday.

During the course of a debate with regard to various developments in both HCU and OU, Home Minister Nayani Narasimha Reddy, while making a statement in the House, said Vemula was not a dalit but belonged to the Vaddera caste, and that there were no issues relating to the dalits in the HCU.

Congress member Sampath Kumar, who is also a Dalit, countered the Home Minister's statement, and asserted that Vemula was a dalit by caste, and that this was duly established by the SC Commission and the MRO, who had issued certificates to that effect.

Displaying copies of the certificates, the Congress member wondered why no action was taken against those who had issued false certificates if Vemula was not a dalit. Why had the State government not arrested the MRO for issuing a false certificate, he demanded to know.