Mumbai: IIT Bombay, in a recent move, has replaced the head counselor of its Student Welllness Centre(SWC) after study groups within the institute accused the former SWC head of making casteist remarks.
The former SWC head, had allegedly circulated an online petition against caste based reservation which was opposed by the Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle(APPSC), a student group within the IIT.
"The students do not feel safe or comfortable going to talk about their mental health issues to such a person who is sharing their casteist views against a constitutional provision for representation of underrepresented communities (sic),” stated the APPSC.
These allegations made rounds on social media again when an 18-year-old student, Darshan Solanki, died by suicide on IIT Bombay campus on February 12, 2023.
The APPSC claimed that the insufficient support system for the SC/ST students paired with alleged 'casual casteism' within the institute could have led to Darshan's unfortunate death.
Formerly, APPSC had informed the National Commission of Scheduled Tribes (NCST) about the alleged insufficient support for SC/ST students at IIT.
