endorsedactivist, Forum Against Oppression of Women, Mumbai
On Tuesday, 27 February, 2018, 9:32:13 AM IST, Teesta Setalvad
<[email protected]> wrote:
Endorsed
Teesta SetavadJournalist-activist, EducationistMumbai
On 27-Feb-2018 1:42 AM, "KP Sasi" <[email protected]> wrote:
I endorse.K.P. SasiFilm Maker
On Mon, Feb 26, 2018 at 4:39 PM, Goldy M George <[email protected]>
wrote:
IT SEEMS THE DOCUMENT DIDN'T GET ATTACHED LAST TIME. HERE IT IS
SOLIDARITY STATEMENT
We theundersigned alumni, activists, academicians, journalists, writers,
teachers, artists,filmmakers, students, researchers, professionals and other
concerned citizensstand in solidarity with the agitating students and scholars
across the fourcampuses of Tata Institute of Social Sciences.
Education is the medium to attain the highest order of humanwisdom. All
education, including streams of pure and social sciences shouldmandatorily be
non-discriminatory and accessible for all citizens in all waysacross the globe.
As an institutional mechanism, educationshould directly or indirectly, serve
the interest of furtheringnon-discriminatory practices, human rights,
irrespective of class, caste,gender, race, ethnicity, religious or sexual
orientation or physical or mentaldisability. Thusone could come to point that
the purpose of all education is tosensitise, to humanise, to take humanity to
higher levels of knowledge,awareness, freedom and social responsibility.
However the story in hand hassomething different to tell.
Students across the four campuses of Tata Institute of Social Sciences(TISS) in
Mumbai, Tuljapur, Hyderabad and Gawhati had gone on strike sinceFebruary 21,
2018. All classes remained empty since then. While the issues around student
aid have beenraised for more than a year now, the last few days have seen
large-scaleprotests at all TISS campuses. In 2016, what initially began as
thestruggle of some students from Dalit-Adivasi sections in TISS has over time
becomea mass protest. The student union of TISS has called for a complete
boycott oflectures, field work, assignment and even examination. This is the
first timethat students’ union has backed any dissent from the students
belonging to thedeprived category. This time the protest began simultaneously
on February 21 atall four TISS campuses – Mumbai, Tuljapur, Hyderabad and
Guwahati – against theinstitute’s decision to stop student aid to those
belonging to Scheduled Castes(SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST) and Other Backward
Classes (OBC) from 2016 onwards.
The Story ofReservation
Reservation is a fundamental right as per Indian Constitution, which hasbeen
time and again under severe threat under the pretext of merit and uppercaste
demand. Reservation in the educationalinstitutions and the financial assistance
in the form of scholarships andfreeships constitute perhaps the most important
factor in the developmentscheme for people from historically oppressed,
marginalised and exploitedbackground. For, it is primarily responsible to make
the basic input ofeducation available to them. Without education, all the
constitutionalsafeguards including the reservation in services would be
infructuous.
The Reformshave already resulted in freezing the grants to many institutions
and instagnating, if not lowering, the expenditure on education. The free
marketethos has entered the educational sphere in a big way. Commercialisation
ofeducation is no more a mere rhetoric; it is now an established fact.
Commercialinstitutions offering specialised education signifying the essential
input fromutilitarian viewpoint have come up in a big way from cities to small
towns.Their product-prices are not only based on the demand-supply
consideration intheir market segment but also are manipulated by their
promotional strategies.In a true spirit of globalisation, many foreign
universities have already invadedthe educational spheres through hitherto
unfamiliar strategic alliances withnon-descript commercial agencies, of course
at hefty dollar equivalentprices.
The TISSStory
TISS students had undergone a difficult phase for the past half adecade, more
specifically in the last two years. This is in particular with thequestion of
accessing the benefits under reservation. One after another socialgroups were
targeted which has now reached a standstill state. Established bythe Union
government’s Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, thepost-matriculation
scholarship scheme has long been the economic spine that hassupported students
from marginalised communities who venture into highereducation. These funds
helped the students from socially backward and economicallyweaker sections to
overcome the hurdle of increasing tuition fees, hostel costand dining hall
charges at the institute, which would have otherwise made itdifficult for them
to continue their studies. This scheme is now in jeopardy. Theapathy of the
previous Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government hasbeen
exacerbated by the present Bharatiya Janata Party regime.
At the beginning of the 2017 academic year, the TISS administrationsuddenly
announced that it would charge dining hall and hostel fees fromeveryone –
including the Government of India-Post Matriculation Scholarship(GOI-PMS)
students belonging to SC and ST categories. According to thiscircular, the
students who were then in the second year of the two yearsmasters programme
also had to pay. Though this issue has been consistently indebate since 2010
onwards in some form or other, it came up in a big wayduring the present Modi
regime, when it began to target the scholarship tostudent from specific social
groups. In 2015, the institute withdrew financialaid to students belonging to
the Other Backward Classes (OBC) (non-creamy layer),and statistics shows that
the representation of OBCs in the institute has takena hit.
About six months ago, a delegation of SC, ST and OBC students had metthe
minister of state for social justice and empowerment, Ramdas Athawale,
anddiscussed their issues in detail. In this meeting, we were assured that
ourissues would be taken up on a priority basis and we would not be made to
pay.While that conversation is still on, the institute went ahead with
exertingpressure and demanding fees from the students. Most students will have
to dropout if the administration does not relent.
Playing theFoul Rhetoric of Reservation
Over the years, the Union Finance Ministry has continuously rejected
thefinancial demands placed by the Department of Social Justice and
Empowerment.This means that the department has a fraction of the amount it
requires todisburse as post-matriculation scholarships across India. A
deposition beforethe standing committee on social justice and empowerment by
the Department ofSocial Justice and Empowerment said that this has resulted in
aggrandising thearrears. The report says, “Scheme of Post Matric Scholarships
for SCs in whichthere are pending arrears to the tune of approximately Rs 8000
crores” for the2017-18 financial year. The standing committee report, presented
inParliament last March, notes that “the Department submitted a requirement of
Rs10355.71 crores to the Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure.
Inresponse to this the department allocated only Rs 6,908.00 crores for the
financialyear 2017-18.”
TargetingTISS
TISS has been on target for a longer period. Apart from the withdrawalof
scholarship for the OBC student – which the TISS administration accounted itto
be the fault of the government – there are several other instances oftargeting
student from Adivasi sections. In 2015, the name of TISS was deletedfrom the
online application procedure for students belonging to ST categorydoing their
MPhil and PhD programmes. The fellowship original known as Rajeev Gandhi
NationalFellowship for ST students (RGNF) was renamed as National Fellowship
for HigherEducation of ST Students (NFST). In the online list, the name of TISS
wasmissing from the list of eligible institutions.
Priyanka Sandilya one of the Adivasi PhD scholars went on towrite to the Jual
Oram, the Minister of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) and to theChairperson of National
Commission for Scheduled Tribe (NCST). She wrote, ‘allthe four campuses of TISS
(Mumbai, Tuljapur, Hyderabad and Gawhati) has been droppedfrom the national
list, leaving them to loose their constitutional rights toavail scholarships.’
She refers to the pattern of prohibiting Adivasi scholarsfrom some particular
institutions like TISS to apply for legitimatescholarship. With the removal of
TISS from the UGC’s list, many AdivasiScholars enrolled for doctoral studies at
TISS have been left staggeringwithout any support.
According to the letter, ‘we have been deprived of applyingunder the UGC
scheme… In the online application form of NFST, the name of TataInstitute of
Social Sciences did not appear in the list of eligibleuniversities, due to
which, many ST students could not apply and some haveapplied leaving the
Institute name blank in the online application form. AsAdivasi Students, we are
eligible to apply under this scheme, but we are beingdeprived of being
considered for the award of the Fellowship.’
It could be seen that this has been a trend in the neo-liberal phase ofIndian
economy where the most marginalised ones are the first victims of
thisdevelopment politics, particularly in the field of education. It is under
thesecompulsions that the students’ current movement in TISS attains importance
andrelevance. The demands are genuine by all legal and logical measure upheld
bythe Constitution of India.
Another trend has crept since 2014. The University Grand Commission(UGC) has
sent circulars to many universities including TISS demanding thedetails of
students from particular sections. This was done at the behest of Ministryof
Human Resource Development (MHRD). These include Adivasis, Dalits,
Muslimminorities and those who are part of communist or communist-like
students’organisations. This highly confidential circular to the Vice
Chancellors demandedfor their addresses, photographs, courses undertaken with
the particularuniversity, parental details, etc. The right wing government
wants to completelywipe of any sort of dissent against it’s regime and has put
in place all sortsof systems against those who resist the anti-people policies
of the government.In a way it is to trap students into a cobweb and stamp them
as terrorists,extremists and anti-nationals. Many students from these sections
were undersevere threat for being from these social groups.
There are many circumstances where the students and scholars are no morethe
free-beings within university premises. Universities are the global spaceswhere
free mind and free thinking are developed. It goes beyond the state’s notionof
academics and also engages with the society in a critical manner. In thisway
the delimitation of spaces for the evolution and development of free mindsand
spaces put forth an array of critical questions on the very notion ofscientific
approach and free thinking of the university spaces.
Third, one of the most critical schools/centres in all Indian universityhave
been notified for a closure. The School/Centre for Study of SocialExclusion and
Inclusive Policy (CSSEIP) in all the universities are supposed toclose down
including TISS. This has been one of the most critical schools/centres with
critical outlook on socio-economic, cultural and political systems,particularly
the continuity of disparities based on caste, class, ethnicity, gender,racial,
religious, regional and sexual orientation. The students, scholars andfaculty
members are already under the threat of loosing these space in terms
ofeducation as well as employment.
TISSStudents – Fighting Discrimination
The students in TISS are creating a new history with such a long strike thathas
never happened in the past. Their fight is not just against the
TISSadministration, but at large against the system that deprives and
discriminatesstudent alongwith their family members from accessing the benefits
ofreservation. It is a fight against the systemic reinstatement of caste
systemunder the aegis of Hindutva. It is to be kept in mind that for the past
threeyears, all progressive, democratic and secular spaces are consistently
underthreat, more specifically within the educational and academic sector.
Withinthe Indian campuses there has been a war-like situation among the
studentsgroups over the past few years, particularly with that of the right
wingideology. Excessive attempts have been made to completely saffronise
theeducational curriculum, syllabus and other aspects, which the students
acrossthe country have resisted strongly.
Under these contexts the demands put forth by the students of TISSattains not
just importance within the institute but also national and
internationalrelevance on how scientific thought processes are completely
blocked.
The Demandof Students
The demands as raised by the students are as follows -
1. Withdrawal of Fees Hike.
2. Reinstatement of freeship/ scholarshipfor Dalit (SC), Adivasi (ST) and
OBC (non-creamy layer) students under reservationpolicy.
3. Nationally bring an end to policiesundermining Social Justice.
4. Stop privatisation of education andeducational institutions across
India.
SC-ST FundsDiverted or Underutilisation
While at one end there is a lack of allocation of funds from the CentralFinance
Ministry, on the other, the funds under SC sub-plan and ST sub-planhave been
consistently diverted or underutilised in most of the states. Some media
reportsindicate that the funds allocated in the Adivasi dominant states, such
asChhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha, have not been able to spend their
fundallocation beyond 11 percent. Few reports suggest that money for
educationalsupport under pre and post matric scholarship were diverted into
theanti-insurgency operations in constructing roads, deployment of security
forcesand their subsidiary expenditures. The state governments have been
playing abig foul play in this entire display.
There are clear cases of fund underutilisation. For instance a studentfrom
Chhattisgarh studying in TISS would get only Rs. 7500/- as fees annuallyfor
doing a course in the institution, while the fees is almost a lakh rupees.The
argument placed is pretty mindless, beyond any rational imagination.
Accordingto this argument, a student studying in TISS is eligible to avail only
theamount, at par with another student from his or her home district, doing
asimilar course in a local government college. This means that if a student
fromBastar studies in TISS, his course cost would be only the fees that another
studentfrom Bastar has to pay. The government authorities argue that this
wouldprevent “discrimination’ in fund allocation for other students. There
cannot bea special category of ‘premier’ and ‘non-premier’ institutions. All
are beingtreated “equal” is the best argument. Perhaps if a student gets
admission forMA in New York University, then he or she has to take Rs. 7500/-
annually asthe course fee.
It has remained the same with most of the states,where the students from SC, ST
and OBC category are treated as beggars on whomthe government is doing some
sort of a charity. The Punjab and Haryana HighCourt has come up with a clear
verdict that the government should release thetotal amounts of fees to the
students belonging to SC category includingtuition fees, hostel fees, mess fees
and any other eligible fees charged by theinstitution. It has also added that
the students should be also assisted by adecent living cost. This means the
‘non-discriminatory’ argument ofChhattisgarh government does not have a locus
standi.
Such a situation of non-deliverance of substantialmonetary assistance, despite
being allocated from the centre, has already ledinstitutions like TISS into a
perennial debt trap. But TISS has never figuredout the ways and means to come
out of it. It would have been better had itsupported the students cause by
engaging in a negotiation with the governmentbodies and ministries. Instead of
doing anything such the institution, in turnhas put more pressure on the
students to bring more money from their homes.
These situations are really threatening for thesustenance of a healthy
democratic nation, where students from particularsections are denied the right
to study. Under these circumstances, we call uponthe government of India, all
the different state governments and the TISSadministration to –
1. Take immediate action to reinstatethe post-matric scholarship meant for
students from different marginalised sections.
2. TISS administration should stop harassmentof students by instant
pressure tactics of fees hike.
3. Both the central and stategovernments should take adequate steps to
immediately release the funds andbacklogs to premier institutions like TISS.
4. The state governments should stopcomparing TISS with colleges in the
local area.
5. Stop spreading hatred in thecampuses and politicising the students on
caste, religious, ethnicity, gender,class and regional factors.
6. Release the backlog fund for thewelfare of the students from weaker
sections of Indian society acrossuniversities of India.
7. Uphold the space for scientific andrationale though development, freedom
of individuals and in understanding thenuances of society in a critical manner.
8. Stop the attempts to saffronise educationalinstitutions and campuses.
9. Reinstate the Schools and Centres onStudy of Social Exclusion and
Inclusive Policy.
10. Ensure the fulfilmentof constitutional and democratic rights of students
from SC, ST, OBC, Minorityand other special categories.
We remain in solidarity and support with the students’ in TISS campuses
1. Dr. Goldy M.George, Activist/ Writer/ Researcher, Chief Editor,
Journal of People's Studies,Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
2. Dr. Sujatha Surepally, Principal, University ArtsCollege,
Satavahana University, Karimnagar, Telengana, India
3. Cynthia Stephen, Co-Founder, Dalit Women’s Network
forSolidarity, Bangalore, India
4. Dr. Madhumita Ray, Assistant Professor, KalingaInstitute of
Industrial Technology, Bhubaneshwar, India
5. Dr. B. Karthik Navayan, Human Rights Activist,Bangalore, India
6. Dr. K. Valentina, Assistant Professor, School ofBusiness,
Public Policy and Social Entrepreneurship, Ambedkar University,Delhi, India
7. Dr. Bela Nawaz, Assistant Professor, Sahid ZulfiqarAli Bhutto
Institute of Science and Technology, Karachi, Pakistan
8. Dr. Salina V. Sreenivasan, Assistant Professor,
SAEBTMGovernment College, Koyilandy, Kozhikode, Kerala, India
9. Laxmidhar Singh, General Secretary, All India HoLanguage Action
Committee, Bhubaneshwar, Odisha, India
10. Dr. Sreedhar Ramamurthi, Executive Director, EnvironicsTrust, New
Delhi, India
11. Amit Sen Gupta, Independent Journalist, New Delhi,India
12. Freny Manecksha, Independent Journalist, Mumbai,India.
13. Samarendra Das, Senior Research Associate, Universityof Sussex,
London, UK
14. Prabhakar Gwal, Former CJM of Sukma, MahasamundDistrict,
Chhattisgarh, India
15. Pradeep Esteves, Context India, Bangalore, India
16. Max Ediger, Peace Activist, USA
17. Dr. Baiju Vareed, Social Work Instructor, Red DeerCollege, Red
Deer Alberta, Canada
18. Dr. Ganesh Digal, Post Doctoral Fellow, Council ofSocial
Development, Hyderabad
19. Vivek Sakpal, Editor, People’s Voice, Mumbai, India
20. Vidya Bhushan Rawat, Activist/ Writer, New Delhi,India
21. Inji Pennu, Global Voices and Global Advocacy, SanDiego,
California, USA
22. Akhilesh Edgar, Coordinator, Working Committee,
ChhattisgarhCitizens’ Joint Action Committee, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India
23. Xavier Dias, Activist, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India
24. Phylis Zeenath Sathar, Artist, Durban, South Africa
25. Sharanya, Humane Koraput, Odisha, India
26. Subhadra Dora, Convenor, Regional Initiative forTribal Empowerment
and Solidarity, Malkangiri, Odisha
27. Ajay T G, Independent Filmmaker, Bhilai, Chhattisgarh,India
28. Sanjeev Khudshah, Writer/ National General Secretary,
CasteAnnihilation Movement, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India
29. Halima Abdullah, Interfaith Cooperation Forum, Mindanao,Philippines
30. Dr. Piya Chatterjee, Chair, FGSS, Scripps College,
ClaremontConsortium, California, USA
31. Ashok Shrimali, Coordinator, Setu Centre for SocialKnowledge and
Action, Ahmedbad, Gujarat, India
32. Dr. Qudsia Anjum, President, Mahila Sanstha Parcham,
Saharanpur,Uttar Pradesh, India
33. Dr. Preshit Nemdas Ambade, PhD Candidate University ofArizona,
Tucson, Arizon, USA
34. Akash Poyam, Editor, Adivasi Resurgence, Raipur,Chhattisgarh, India
35. Obed Manwatkar, Volunteer, Truthseekers International,PhD Scholar,
Allahabad University, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India
36. Augustine Veliath, Chairperson, NonviolenceFoundation, New Delhi
37. Sherwani Amir Khan, Odisha Shramajeebee Mancha,Bhubaneshwar, Odisha
38. Makarand Purohit, Freelance Documentary Filmmaker,
Durg,Chhattisgarh, India
39. Kavita Krishnan, Secretary, AIPWA, New Delhi
40. Heenrani Nayak, Mahila Shramjeebee Mancha-Odisha,Bhubaneshwar,
Odisha, India
41. Sagaya Shanthy, Visthar, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
42. Gopabandhu Sika, Vice President, Mulnivasi Students& Youth Front,
Bargarh, Odisha, India
43. Meesha Bhagat, PhD Scholar, University of Jammu,Jammu, Jammu &
Kashmir, India
44. Hemangi Kadlak, PhD Scholar, TISS, Mumbai, India
45. Sheetal Dinakar Kamble, PhD Scholar, TISS, Mumbai,India
46. Shabana Ali, PhD Scholar, School of Art and Aesthetics,Jawaharlal
Nehru University, New Delhi, India
47. Zeeshan Husain, PhD Scholar, Jawaharlal NehruUniversity, New
Delhi, India
48. Dishani Roy, Student, BA Sociology (Honours),
PresidencyUniversity, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
49. Bobby Kunnu, Lawyer, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
50. Raya Steier, California, USA
51. Pramila K. P., PhD Scholar, Central University of
Hyderabad,Hyderabad, Telengana, India
52. Hemanta Dalapati, Poet/ Writer, Malkangiri, Odisha
53. Christopher Rajkumar, Executive Secretary, NCCI-Unityand Mission,
National Council of Churches in India, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India
GMG
On 26 February 2018 at 16:00, Goldy M George <[email protected]> wrote:
APOLOGIES FOR CROSS POSTINGWRITE BACK TO [email protected]
Dear allYou might be aware that the students in TISS campus has entered their
sixth day of strike against the withdrawal of the scholarship given to SC/ST
people. One of their demands is to Stop Privatisation of educational
institutions. I am sending you this solidarity letter that has agred and signed
by many including TISS alumni, activists, academicians, journalists, writers,
teachers, artists, filmmakers, students, researchers, professionals and other
concerned people from across the globe. This mail comes to you for further
endorsement.
Please send me your COMPLETE NAME, POSITION, ORGANISATION/ INSTITUTION,
LOCATIONWe would release it tomorrow (February 27, 2018) by 5 pm (IST) to all
media and others. We would take all endorsement it till 4 PM (IST) on
February 27, 2018. Please consider it as urgent. Those who have signed it need
not endorse it again.
Kindly forward it to people on your list serve to get maximum support.
Warm regardsGMG
--
------------------------------ ---
"Creation of a casteless, classless and peaceful society is indeed the first
step towards just, egalitarian, and harmonious society. It is not just a
struggle of one's identity, rather it is the struggle for the complete
liberation of mankind. A society of equals, neither unequal nor more-equals,
beyond the strings of caste, class, gender, race, ethnicity, etc. Otherwise it
leads to social oppression, political exploitation, economic deprivation,
cultural domination, gender discrimination, class isolation, deliberate
exclusion. Lets’ believe in a society beyond this...."
DR. GOLDY M. GEORGE+919893277910
--
------------------------------ ---
"Creation of a casteless, classless and peaceful society is indeed the first
step towards just, egalitarian, and harmonious society. It is not just a
struggle of one's identity, rather it is the struggle for the complete
liberation of mankind. A society of equals, neither unequal nor more-equals,
beyond the strings of caste, class, gender, race, ethnicity, etc. Otherwise it
leads to social oppression, political exploitation, economic deprivation,
cultural domination, gender discrimination, class isolation, deliberate
exclusion. Lets’ believe in a society beyond this...."
DR. GOLDY M. GEORGE+919893277910
--
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