Student community demands justice for 'institutional murder' of Mumbai doctor
Updated: May 28, 2019, 08:07 IST | Pallavi SmartTerming the suicide of junior Dr Payal Tadvi after being allegedly tortured by three of her seniors an "institutional murder", students across the nation have demanded justice for her
Terming the suicide of junior Dr Payal Tadvi after being allegedly tortured by three of her seniors an "institutional murder", students across the nation have demanded justice for her.
The Dalit students collective from IIT-B, TISS, University of Hyderabad (UoH) and many others educational institutions have extended their support and solidarity to the movement — a result of Dr Tadvi's suicide — against caste atrocities. "We condemn the casteist acts of the three senior doctors in BYL Nair Hospital, which has led to the institutional murder of Dr. Tadvi. There have been several incidents in the past where students from Dalit and Adivasi communities took their lives because of the hostile environment created by the elites of the society. We demand that the police arrest the three culprits and strict institutional measures are taken by the Maharashtra government to address the caste-based harassment in educational institutions," the Ambedkarite Students Collective, IIT-B, said in a statement.
A statement issued by the UoH's Ambedkar Students Association said, "Murder of Dr. Payal Tadvi can't be simply read as an instance of ragging by three individuals. Rather it is a case of caste atrocities committed by the institution she was studying in." Jit Hazarika, President of Students' Union at TISS, said, "Students from the institute will participate in the protest on Tuesday demanding justice for Dr. Tadvi and also extending support to the larger cause of caste atrocities." Protests will also be held in Delhi. Kanhaiya Kumar, former JNU students' union leader, tweeted, "Casteism took life of Dr. Payal Tadvi. While we are demanding action against those who are at fault here it is important that there is national level movement against casteism. There is no punishment to culprits in case of Rohit Vemula yet".