As part of a fact-finding delegation of women representing various civil society organizations and women’s organizations, WSS held a press conference at 12.30 pm at Karimnagar press club on 2 January, 2017 and visited Satavahana University (SU).
Context: On 25 December 2017, dalit bahujan students of Satavahana University in Karimnagar, Telangana, held an event outside the campus gate in front of the Jyotiba Phule Statue to burn “Manusmriti”. This programme is done every year on 25 December to keep the spirit of first such event conducted by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in 1927 alive. After the students finished the event of symbolically burning text from the Manusmriti (not from a book but words from the text written on large chart sheets), and were walking back to the hostel, a local BJP politician and his supporters from RSS-affiliated organizations arrived at the University with sticks. They came inside the campus and attacked these students who were very few numbers, meanwhile others went to hostel and brought other students to resist this attack by RSS. As this clash continued, RSS members from outside the University joined in hundreds and Satavahana students also came to the scene in big numbers. Not one of these RSS members was from the university and some of them have criminal cases on them. Continue reading
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