Dalit prof quits in protest against Hyderabad varsity

In his resignation letter to the university registrar, Prof Sreepati Ramudu, head of the centre for the study of social exclusion and inclusive policy, on Thursday referred to the death of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula on January 17 that stirred nation-wide protests, and said he had been following the developments on the campus before and after the incident. 

“The current environment on the campus is extremely vitiated and is perceived by the Dalit community as intimidating and hostile,” he said. 

“They (Dalits) feel very vulnerable and lack confidence in the impartiality of the administration. So, I had hoped that knowing very well the sentiments of the Dalit faculty expressed in many letters from the SC/ST teachers’ forum, the administration will take up confidence building measures. Instead, to my shock, I see a circular naming Prof Vipin Srivastava as the Pro-Vice-Chancellor-1,” Ramudu said. 

Reacting to the development, Srivastava on Friday alleged Ramudu was not cooperating in administrative matters and that he was not attending to any work. Ramudu alleged Srivastava had faced a serious allegation i