On the tenth anniversary of the death of Dalit Ph.D. scholar and Ambedkar Students Association leader Rohith Vemula, his martyrdom will be commemorated on January 17 at the University of Hyderabad. Student organizations and social justice movements will once again highlight his death as an “institutional murder,” demanding justice and accountability.
In this context, advancing the demand for legislation against caste-based discrimination in higher education institutions, the Karnataka team of the Rohith Act Campaign will publicly release the “People’s Draft of the Rohith Act” within the university campus.
The event will begin at 2:00 PM at Velivada (North Shopcom) with the formal presentation of the draft. This will be followed by an official launch at 4:00 PM in the Savitribai Phule Auditorium (DST). Later at night, a torchlight procession will be held within the campus.
As part of the martyrdom day, Rohith Vemula’s mother, Radhika Vemula, will offer floral tributes at the Rohith Stupa at 2:00 PM.
The draft launch will be attended by senior Ambedkarite leader and lawyer V. Mridula, National Law University Assistant Professor Dr. Ashna Singh, and lecturer Hulikunte Murthy.
The public event will also see the presence of Gujarat MLA and Congress leader Jignesh Mevani, Dharma Samaj Party chief Dr. Vishardhan Maharaj, renowned anti-caste intellectual V. Geeta, lawyers V. Raghunath and Advocate Jay Bhim Rao, University of Hyderabad professor Bhangya Bhukya, Rameshbhai N. Solanki (father of IIT Bombay Ph.D. scholar Darshan Solanki, who died by suicide), and Abeda Salim Tadvi (mother of Dr. Payal Tadvi, who died by suicide in 2019 following alleged casteist and Islamophobic harassment).
Cultural performances such as Parai and Oppari will be presented by the Adavi Arts Collective during the event.
In a statement, the ASA, University of Hyderabad, said “It has been a decade since our brother Rohith Vemula was institutionally murdered, yet those responsible walk free. These are ten years of being denied justice. Let us unite in large numbers to advance this political and legal struggle for Rohith and his family.”
Notably, Rohith Vemula’s death on January 17, 2016, brought caste-based discrimination in higher education institutions to national attention. Even a decade later, the demand for the Rohith Vemula Act remains unmet, but students and social organizations continue their movement with a resolute commitment to see it implemented nationwide.
