Chennai: A year after the controversy of de-recognition of the Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle (APSC) in IIT Madras broke out, the members are alleging that they are still facing discrimination from the administration, which imposed restrictions on a seminar conducted to commemorate B. R.Ambedkar’s 125th birth anniversary.
The student body APSC was derecognised by the IIT last year following the complaint that it was critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. After the widespread protests and social mediacampaign, IIT Madras reinstated its recognition.
To commemorate 125th birth anniversary of Dr.B.R. Ambedkar, APSC had organised a seminar on ‘Liberating Ambedkar’s Ideology from Religious Nationalism’ on April 14 at the IC&SR auditorium in IIT Madras and Ram Punyani, a former professor at IIT Bombay, was invited to deliver the oration.
A core member of APSC told DC, “Right from the day when we decided to have the seminar on Ambedkar’s birthday, the management created hurdles. The management imposed conditions like restricting us from distributing pamphlets and inviting outsiders. Shortly before the start of the seminar, some 6 or 7 security guards were posted at the entrance of the auditorium and they refused to allow people who didn’t have an IIT identity card as per the order.
Manypeople, even students, were not able to enter the hall and returned disappointed,” he said. “When we contacted officials they told us it’s an old rule that outsiders are not allowed for institute lectures in IIT Madras,” he added. The speech of Prof Ram Punyani was then shifted outside to enable others also to hear it and the oration continued for more than an hour outside the auditorium.
“Such restrictions were not imposed for the seminars organised by the corporate companies and pro-Hindutva groups. It is only against us that the management is showing such discrimination,” the core member alleged.
A day before the seminar, students belonging to pro-Hindutva study circle also threatened the APSC members with severe consequences, students alleged. APSC team has said in its facebook page that it was not the single incident. “We are suffocating like anything for conducting such events and the restrictions increased a lot after the re-recognition of APSC,” they said in the post.
“Why will teachers discriminate against their own students,” asked Professor M.S. Sivakumar, dean of students, IIT Madras. “We are open to talking with the students. We are imposing the rules wherever it’s necessary to upkeep the campus. It’s not to suppress any students,” he said.
