‘Karnataka govt stands firm to enact Rohith Vemula Act; we’ll bring legislation’: CM Siddaramaiah

BENGALURU: After Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s requested to enact the Rohith Vemula Act in Karnataka, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that the state government stands firm in its resolve to enact the Act in the state and will bring the legislation at the earliest.

“I thank Rahul Gandhi for his heartfelt letter and unwavering commitment to social justice. Our Government stands firm in its resolve to enact the Rohith Vemula Act in Karnataka — to ensure no student faces discrimination based on caste, class, or religion. We will bring this legislation at the earliest to honour the dreams of Rohith, Payal, Darshan, and countless others who deserved dignity, not exclusion,” the Karnataka CM posted on X.

“This will be a step towards realising Dr BR Ambedkar’s vision of an equal, compassionate India,” he added.

Earlier today, Rahul Gandhi wrote to Siddaramaiah, urging the state government to enact the Rohith Vemula Act to ensure that no one faces caste-based discrimination in the education system.

“Recently, I met students and teachers from Dalit, Adivasi and OBC communities in Parliament. During the conversation, they told me how they face caste-based discrimination in colleges and universities. Babasaheb Ambedkar demonstrated that education is the primary means by which even the most deprived can become empowered and break the caste system. But it is very unfortunate that even after decades, lakhs of students are facing caste discrimination in our education system. This discrimination has taken the lives of promising students like Rohith Vemula, Payal Tadvi and Darshan Solanki,” Rahul Gandhi wrote in a post on X on Friday.

“Such horrific incidents cannot be tolerated at any cost. Now is the time to put a complete stop to this injustice. I have written a letter to Siddaramaiah ji requesting him to implement the Rohith Vemula Act in Karnataka. No child of India should have to face the casteism that Babasaheb Ambedkar, Rohith Vemula and crores of people have faced,” he added.

In a letter dated April 16, Rahul Gandhi said, “Here he describes an incident during a long bullock cart journey. There was plenty of food with us.

There was hunger burning within us; with all this, we were to sleep without food; that was because we could get no water, and we could get no water because we were untouchables.”

The LoP further said that it is a shame that even today, millions of students from Dalit, Adivasi and OBC communities have to face such brutal discrimination in our educational system.

“The murder of bright young people like Rohith Vemula, Payal Tadvi and Darshan Solanki is simply not acceptable. It is time to put an end to this firmly. I urge the Karnataka government to enact the Rohith Vemula Act so that no child of India has to face what Dr BR Ambedkar, Rohit Vemula and millions of others have had to endure,” Lok Sabha LoP added.

Rohith Vemula died by suicide in January 2016, allegedly upset over disciplinary actions taken against him by Hyderabad Central University, where he was pursuing a PhD.

Vemula, a PhD scholar at the Hyderabad Central University, was found hanging from a ceiling fan in a hostel room on January 17, 2016. He was allegedly upset over disciplinary actions taken against him by the university. (ANI)