FOCUS
CIVIL SOCIETY
Who are They & Where are They?
A Head of the Department (HOD) of Community Medicine at the prestigious Post Graduate Instt. of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, failed a student by name Jaspreet. He was in his fifth and final year. He was reportedly an excellent student throughout and had never failed, apparently. But his HOD was the problem. Jaspreet Singh was Dalit by birth, and HOD, probably an upper cast, had told him that ‘he might have entered medical college using his scheduled caste certificate but would not go out with a degree’.
Unable to bear the insult young, Doctor-to-be, Jaspreet Singh, killed himself in the college library. The suicide note recovered from his coat pocket accused his HOD with deliberately failing him and threatening to fail him again and again.
Sources close to the family of Jaspreet Singh informed that all that he wanted was to become a doctor. The threat by this inhuman HOD cut short that dream. It was in Jan 2008. A year later, reportedly, his young sister, a student of B.C.A, also committed suicide, heart-broken at the injustice done to her brother.
Thus two young lives were snuffed out by the inhumanity, insensitivity and mental cruelty of a highly educated medical teacher and a practitioner. There was no 24x7 channel picking up the story and nobody from the Civil Society clamoured for justice. Where are they? Its already over 3 years.
Balmukund, a Dalit student from Uttar Pradesh, a medical student studied at the All India Instt. of Medical Science (AIIMS) in New Delhi, committed suicide on 3rd March 2010. He was in his final year MBBS. The director of the institute had allegedly told Balmukund that he world never become a doctor even if he worked hard.
According to the Insight Foundation, which runs Dalit and Adivasi students portal, both the police and the management of AIIMS blamed the suicide on personal reasons of depression etc, and hence did not take the matter seriously. But reportedly Balmukund’s parents ask, ‘Who and What drove him to depression? They told that their son has been saying frequently that he was being harassed because of his caste.
They accused AIIMS of caste discrimination that drove their son to commit suicide and demanded probe. Shockingly police and even AIIMS administration plainly refused to consider this demand, parents complain. Authorities did not even conduct any preliminary enquiry.
Coming from a very poor social stock, having made it to the prestigious AIIMS to do MBBS, it was extremely saddening to note that only because of the flagrant victimization due to caste discrimination a brilliant life was cut short. It was over an year since the suicide, but as usual print media, 24x7 electronic channels had no time to follow up the case. The question is, it is not just the death of an individual, it is the element of denial of opportunity for a place in the sun for these socially disadvantaged groups. Yes the question of reservation in educational institutions of higher learning, or even reservation per se, has multiple questions to be answered. But where is the Civil Society fighting for justice to the vulnerable and marginalised section, which is really trying hard to make it, despite all constraints, but stymied by the walls of hatred from the well heeled upper caste, and let down by their own cousins who are already entrenched ‘creamy layer’ among them.
Coming to the caste discrimination, it was generally known, since quite some time, that AIIMS did have a history of such despicable practices. Following the allegation of rampant prevalence of this Indian apartheid, Union Health & Family Welfare Ministry had constituted a fact finding committee headed by Prof S.K. Thorat, the then UGC Chairman, in Sept. 2006. As early as May 2007, the committee came out with a report exposing many forms of caste discrimination practiced against lower caste students, both by other fellow students and by faculty members belonging to upper caste. Report also accused the authorities at AIIMS of encouraging hostile caste discrimination.
According to activists of Insight Foundation, a group fighting for Dalit students, if the government and AIIMS authorities had acted on Prof. Thorat Committee report and tried to improve things at the institute, families of neither Jaspreet nor Balmukund would have been grieving the loss of their precious bright children. And the nation would not have lost two brilliant doctors.
Yes, has the media or the Civil Society raised their finger and asked question, as to why the report was not acted upon for almost 4 years?
There are innumerable instances of grave injustice where the so-called civil society just did not do its bidding.
Then there is the story of Linesh Mohan Gawle, a second year P.hd student from the National Institute of Immunology New Delhi, committed suicide in his hostel room just a month ago on 11th April 2011. He too was a Dalit from Jabalpur. Apparently very brilliant. He had scored 98% marks in GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engg.) test. He was short listed at many institutes including IIT Bombay for written tests/interviews. Administration dismissed the suicide as a ‘love failure'. But, says, Shephalika Shekar, of JNU “This is a case of Dalit oppression by upper caste elites, who dominate everywhere”, while stressing that nobody heard of the 'love partner' of Linesh Mohan and 'there is an urgent need of positive structural change in the way NII staff treats students'.
“We cannot believe our friend is not with us anymore” said a fellow student on condition of anonymity. “It is a sin to openly dissent at NII, unlike in JNU, where students can at least speak their hearts without fearing butchery of their degree and career”.
A brilliant Dalit student, who topped all along, is no more with us. So what drove him to commit suicide? Were the upper class students and teachers got to-gether to drive him to become another Ekalavya. At least Ekalavya lived to tell his story.
“Bad things happen to society not because of bad people but because of silence of the good people”, said Napoleon Bonaparte in 17th century. Three centuries later it was Martin Luther King Jr, who has famously observed “Our life begins to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” Our approach to development has not proved equal to the task of ensuring just society, especially for the socially, economically and psychologically oppressed people. Despite a section of civil society making some right noises at time, its efforts were either fragmented or half hearted. However greater part of the civil society has gone on with their own life unconcerned about the suffering of vulnerable section of our society.
On 1st May, the Labour Day, the government of B.S. Yediyurappa of Karnataka had released an ad. to the print media conveying a ‘Message’ addressed to Dear Brethren. Among many messages, one of them was “Government is totally committed to safeguard the interests of working class by building a healthy industrial relationship and to provide social justice to labourers through implementation of various pro labour laws” and the irony was, on the same page there was a news item “Pourakarmikas up against the wall”, in big bold letters with “Few options available for contract labourers in City Municipal Corporations” in small bold letters.
Advertisement informed about “the total commitment to safe guard the interest of the working class and to provide social justice to labourers”. How do we react to this ad when the reality is, there are these Pourakarmikas working for the past 20 years as contract labourers, with no benefit of any kind, and there are thousands of them all over Karnataka. A woman labourer said “we are not provided with hand gloves, gumboots or even face masks. Cannot take leave even if ill, since all absences are without payment”. According to the Contract Labour Abolition and Regulation Act 1970, no recruitment can be made on contract basis for jobs of permanent nature. Pourakarmikas are permanent employees of the state and therefore the state cannot employ them on contract basis. But ‘it is cheap’ admits Deputy Commissioner Somashekhar of Tumkur “If the services of contract labourers are regularised there would be permanent financial burden on the government. This was why this outsourcing” D.C had candidly admitted. Yes, those who generate rubbish are better looked after and those who clear the rubbish “hell with them”. What a just society! Yes Civil Society, are you listening!!
Our governments are indeed well intentioned but go to the next page of the daily and another headline says “Unorganised Workers’ Board yet to get on with its work”. Set up in 2009, the Karnataka State Unorganised Workers Social Security Board (KSUWSSB) has reportedly met only twice since last over 2 years. Stymied without fund and direction, KSUWSSB seems to have lost in the corridors of power. Yes, we have money for all grandiose plans, Rs.75000 crores for Common Wealth Games but no money for the 92% working population of this country who fall under unorganised sector. Do we cry or do we laugh? Oh yes where is the civil society, which too uses this section of the working class.
Going back to the cases involving two Dalit medical students Jaspreet and Balmukund, the case involving later was somehow scuttled by AIIMS and the obliging police, but the one involving former, mercifully did proceed to conclude, that Jaspreet was indeed diabolically failed by the Community Medicine HOD Prof. N.K Geol. The three member committee of Professors, Dr Rajesh Kumar, Amarjeet Singh and Arun Kumar Aggrawal, specialised in Community Medicines, re-evaluated Jaspreet's answer sheets and found that he had in fact passed the test.
Again where is the Civil Society and these electronic channels, to make the institute PGIMER Chandigarh and the HOD, the diabolic Prof. N.K Goel accountable? It is a sad spectacle, in a country where the authorities ‘cry with the poor but side the rich’, this savage Professor has not been booked by the law enforcing authorities. In fact he should be booked under Atrocities Against SC/ST Act, and those who are shielding him in the institute.
Some years ago, at a function in the Aurangabad Medical College, ABVP displayed a saffron flag with the image of ‘Bharath Maata’ on it. Some Dalit students protested saying why not national flag instead. The Dean Dr A. Malik supported ABVP and this resulted in clashes among students, where a Dalit student was badly hurt. In protest, several Dalit students left the hostel for somedays. On return, they allegedly found their room vandalised with books and certificates burnt. On complaining, police slapped dacoit charges on 21 Dalit students.
And don’t Mumbaikars remember, the slaughtering of Dalits for skinning the dead cows in a north Mumbai suburb? Except a news brief nothing else happened. Civil Society plugged its ears and covered their eyes.
An elderly old lady, being illiterate, unable to fill the paying-in-slip government challan to pay some government charges, into a public sector bank cash counter, and the clerk behind the cash counter throwing it out, literally on the old lady’s face, and yelling at the women for not having filled up the form. The clerk at the Municipal Office pushed her off with the challan without filling it, and the clerk at the bank throwing the paper on the lady, both represented ‘educated’ ‘literate’ civil society. How sad, both forgot they too could have an old lady for a mother at home, who could walk into such situation and then what? They couldn’t perceive such a scenario, because they were too self centered to think beyond themselves. And they want the whole world to sympathise with them when they go on strike!
While we have any number of instances where civil society was found neither civil nor appeared agitated, there are some instances where civil society gathered around the victim since victim was media heavy weight. Look at the Lokpal Bill imbroglio. The moment our 24x7 channels were latched on to the hourly relaying of the fasting by Anna Hazare & Company, there was a beeline, of all and sundry. From film personality to intellectuals to politicians to retired bureaucrats all wanted to be covered by the 24x7 channels and seen as nation’s saviours. Of course it did help the movement of Anna Hazare and eventually the demands of the so-called civil society forum was accepted by the government. Then there is another high profile case of Dr Binayak Sen. Here too whole lot of civil society members had expressed their outrage at his arrest and conviction. Although it was a court case, Mr Ram Jethmalani fought the case for free, since civil society had joined the chorus with other human rights activists. But the same society had no time for the other two accused in the same case involving Narayan Sanyal and Piyush Guha. They are still in jail, nobody from civil society making any noise for their release.
That is how, when the story of Jaspreeth Singh and Balmukund appeared in The Hindu on 8th May, there was not even a single letter to the editor on the story by Vidya Subramaniam. But around the same time the space for Letter to Editor was full of response on the Sureme Court judgement on Ayodhya, Land acquisition issue in UP and others. This selective activism of the civil society is very disturbing.
We, who are part of the civil society, need to recognise that sustainable and qualitative improvement in the lives of those battling the discrimination by caste, class or gender can be achieved only if we address the root cause of the oppression of these discriminated sections. But the problem with the civil society is their reluctance to join hands with like minded people for a common objective. Like the former Vigilance Director of Karnataka Lokayukta Dr Sudarshan had observed “While corrupt people get to-gether very fast, honest people often suffer from ego problems and do not come to-gether into a single platform to fight the evil”. This must change for a brighter dawn.
J.Shriyan
Who are They & Where are They?
A Head of the Department (HOD) of Community Medicine at the prestigious Post Graduate Instt. of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, failed a student by name Jaspreet. He was in his fifth and final year. He was reportedly an excellent student throughout and had never failed, apparently. But his HOD was the problem. Jaspreet Singh was Dalit by birth, and HOD, probably an upper cast, had told him that ‘he might have entered medical college using his scheduled caste certificate but would not go out with a degree’.
Unable to bear the insult young, Doctor-to-be, Jaspreet Singh, killed himself in the college library. The suicide note recovered from his coat pocket accused his HOD with deliberately failing him and threatening to fail him again and again.
Sources close to the family of Jaspreet Singh informed that all that he wanted was to become a doctor. The threat by this inhuman HOD cut short that dream. It was in Jan 2008. A year later, reportedly, his young sister, a student of B.C.A, also committed suicide, heart-broken at the injustice done to her brother.
Thus two young lives were snuffed out by the inhumanity, insensitivity and mental cruelty of a highly educated medical teacher and a practitioner. There was no 24x7 channel picking up the story and nobody from the Civil Society clamoured for justice. Where are they? Its already over 3 years.
Balmukund, a Dalit student from Uttar Pradesh, a medical student studied at the All India Instt. of Medical Science (AIIMS) in New Delhi, committed suicide on 3rd March 2010. He was in his final year MBBS. The director of the institute had allegedly told Balmukund that he world never become a doctor even if he worked hard.
According to the Insight Foundation, which runs Dalit and Adivasi students portal, both the police and the management of AIIMS blamed the suicide on personal reasons of depression etc, and hence did not take the matter seriously. But reportedly Balmukund’s parents ask, ‘Who and What drove him to depression? They told that their son has been saying frequently that he was being harassed because of his caste.
They accused AIIMS of caste discrimination that drove their son to commit suicide and demanded probe. Shockingly police and even AIIMS administration plainly refused to consider this demand, parents complain. Authorities did not even conduct any preliminary enquiry.
Coming from a very poor social stock, having made it to the prestigious AIIMS to do MBBS, it was extremely saddening to note that only because of the flagrant victimization due to caste discrimination a brilliant life was cut short. It was over an year since the suicide, but as usual print media, 24x7 electronic channels had no time to follow up the case. The question is, it is not just the death of an individual, it is the element of denial of opportunity for a place in the sun for these socially disadvantaged groups. Yes the question of reservation in educational institutions of higher learning, or even reservation per se, has multiple questions to be answered. But where is the Civil Society fighting for justice to the vulnerable and marginalised section, which is really trying hard to make it, despite all constraints, but stymied by the walls of hatred from the well heeled upper caste, and let down by their own cousins who are already entrenched ‘creamy layer’ among them.
Coming to the caste discrimination, it was generally known, since quite some time, that AIIMS did have a history of such despicable practices. Following the allegation of rampant prevalence of this Indian apartheid, Union Health & Family Welfare Ministry had constituted a fact finding committee headed by Prof S.K. Thorat, the then UGC Chairman, in Sept. 2006. As early as May 2007, the committee came out with a report exposing many forms of caste discrimination practiced against lower caste students, both by other fellow students and by faculty members belonging to upper caste. Report also accused the authorities at AIIMS of encouraging hostile caste discrimination.
According to activists of Insight Foundation, a group fighting for Dalit students, if the government and AIIMS authorities had acted on Prof. Thorat Committee report and tried to improve things at the institute, families of neither Jaspreet nor Balmukund would have been grieving the loss of their precious bright children. And the nation would not have lost two brilliant doctors.
Yes, has the media or the Civil Society raised their finger and asked question, as to why the report was not acted upon for almost 4 years?
There are innumerable instances of grave injustice where the so-called civil society just did not do its bidding.
Then there is the story of Linesh Mohan Gawle, a second year P.hd student from the National Institute of Immunology New Delhi, committed suicide in his hostel room just a month ago on 11th April 2011. He too was a Dalit from Jabalpur. Apparently very brilliant. He had scored 98% marks in GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engg.) test. He was short listed at many institutes including IIT Bombay for written tests/interviews. Administration dismissed the suicide as a ‘love failure'. But, says, Shephalika Shekar, of JNU “This is a case of Dalit oppression by upper caste elites, who dominate everywhere”, while stressing that nobody heard of the 'love partner' of Linesh Mohan and 'there is an urgent need of positive structural change in the way NII staff treats students'.
“We cannot believe our friend is not with us anymore” said a fellow student on condition of anonymity. “It is a sin to openly dissent at NII, unlike in JNU, where students can at least speak their hearts without fearing butchery of their degree and career”.
A brilliant Dalit student, who topped all along, is no more with us. So what drove him to commit suicide? Were the upper class students and teachers got to-gether to drive him to become another Ekalavya. At least Ekalavya lived to tell his story.
“Bad things happen to society not because of bad people but because of silence of the good people”, said Napoleon Bonaparte in 17th century. Three centuries later it was Martin Luther King Jr, who has famously observed “Our life begins to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” Our approach to development has not proved equal to the task of ensuring just society, especially for the socially, economically and psychologically oppressed people. Despite a section of civil society making some right noises at time, its efforts were either fragmented or half hearted. However greater part of the civil society has gone on with their own life unconcerned about the suffering of vulnerable section of our society.
On 1st May, the Labour Day, the government of B.S. Yediyurappa of Karnataka had released an ad. to the print media conveying a ‘Message’ addressed to Dear Brethren. Among many messages, one of them was “Government is totally committed to safeguard the interests of working class by building a healthy industrial relationship and to provide social justice to labourers through implementation of various pro labour laws” and the irony was, on the same page there was a news item “Pourakarmikas up against the wall”, in big bold letters with “Few options available for contract labourers in City Municipal Corporations” in small bold letters.
Advertisement informed about “the total commitment to safe guard the interest of the working class and to provide social justice to labourers”. How do we react to this ad when the reality is, there are these Pourakarmikas working for the past 20 years as contract labourers, with no benefit of any kind, and there are thousands of them all over Karnataka. A woman labourer said “we are not provided with hand gloves, gumboots or even face masks. Cannot take leave even if ill, since all absences are without payment”. According to the Contract Labour Abolition and Regulation Act 1970, no recruitment can be made on contract basis for jobs of permanent nature. Pourakarmikas are permanent employees of the state and therefore the state cannot employ them on contract basis. But ‘it is cheap’ admits Deputy Commissioner Somashekhar of Tumkur “If the services of contract labourers are regularised there would be permanent financial burden on the government. This was why this outsourcing” D.C had candidly admitted. Yes, those who generate rubbish are better looked after and those who clear the rubbish “hell with them”. What a just society! Yes Civil Society, are you listening!!
Our governments are indeed well intentioned but go to the next page of the daily and another headline says “Unorganised Workers’ Board yet to get on with its work”. Set up in 2009, the Karnataka State Unorganised Workers Social Security Board (KSUWSSB) has reportedly met only twice since last over 2 years. Stymied without fund and direction, KSUWSSB seems to have lost in the corridors of power. Yes, we have money for all grandiose plans, Rs.75000 crores for Common Wealth Games but no money for the 92% working population of this country who fall under unorganised sector. Do we cry or do we laugh? Oh yes where is the civil society, which too uses this section of the working class.
Going back to the cases involving two Dalit medical students Jaspreet and Balmukund, the case involving later was somehow scuttled by AIIMS and the obliging police, but the one involving former, mercifully did proceed to conclude, that Jaspreet was indeed diabolically failed by the Community Medicine HOD Prof. N.K Geol. The three member committee of Professors, Dr Rajesh Kumar, Amarjeet Singh and Arun Kumar Aggrawal, specialised in Community Medicines, re-evaluated Jaspreet's answer sheets and found that he had in fact passed the test.
Again where is the Civil Society and these electronic channels, to make the institute PGIMER Chandigarh and the HOD, the diabolic Prof. N.K Goel accountable? It is a sad spectacle, in a country where the authorities ‘cry with the poor but side the rich’, this savage Professor has not been booked by the law enforcing authorities. In fact he should be booked under Atrocities Against SC/ST Act, and those who are shielding him in the institute.
Some years ago, at a function in the Aurangabad Medical College, ABVP displayed a saffron flag with the image of ‘Bharath Maata’ on it. Some Dalit students protested saying why not national flag instead. The Dean Dr A. Malik supported ABVP and this resulted in clashes among students, where a Dalit student was badly hurt. In protest, several Dalit students left the hostel for somedays. On return, they allegedly found their room vandalised with books and certificates burnt. On complaining, police slapped dacoit charges on 21 Dalit students.
And don’t Mumbaikars remember, the slaughtering of Dalits for skinning the dead cows in a north Mumbai suburb? Except a news brief nothing else happened. Civil Society plugged its ears and covered their eyes.
An elderly old lady, being illiterate, unable to fill the paying-in-slip government challan to pay some government charges, into a public sector bank cash counter, and the clerk behind the cash counter throwing it out, literally on the old lady’s face, and yelling at the women for not having filled up the form. The clerk at the Municipal Office pushed her off with the challan without filling it, and the clerk at the bank throwing the paper on the lady, both represented ‘educated’ ‘literate’ civil society. How sad, both forgot they too could have an old lady for a mother at home, who could walk into such situation and then what? They couldn’t perceive such a scenario, because they were too self centered to think beyond themselves. And they want the whole world to sympathise with them when they go on strike!
While we have any number of instances where civil society was found neither civil nor appeared agitated, there are some instances where civil society gathered around the victim since victim was media heavy weight. Look at the Lokpal Bill imbroglio. The moment our 24x7 channels were latched on to the hourly relaying of the fasting by Anna Hazare & Company, there was a beeline, of all and sundry. From film personality to intellectuals to politicians to retired bureaucrats all wanted to be covered by the 24x7 channels and seen as nation’s saviours. Of course it did help the movement of Anna Hazare and eventually the demands of the so-called civil society forum was accepted by the government. Then there is another high profile case of Dr Binayak Sen. Here too whole lot of civil society members had expressed their outrage at his arrest and conviction. Although it was a court case, Mr Ram Jethmalani fought the case for free, since civil society had joined the chorus with other human rights activists. But the same society had no time for the other two accused in the same case involving Narayan Sanyal and Piyush Guha. They are still in jail, nobody from civil society making any noise for their release.
That is how, when the story of Jaspreeth Singh and Balmukund appeared in The Hindu on 8th May, there was not even a single letter to the editor on the story by Vidya Subramaniam. But around the same time the space for Letter to Editor was full of response on the Sureme Court judgement on Ayodhya, Land acquisition issue in UP and others. This selective activism of the civil society is very disturbing.
We, who are part of the civil society, need to recognise that sustainable and qualitative improvement in the lives of those battling the discrimination by caste, class or gender can be achieved only if we address the root cause of the oppression of these discriminated sections. But the problem with the civil society is their reluctance to join hands with like minded people for a common objective. Like the former Vigilance Director of Karnataka Lokayukta Dr Sudarshan had observed “While corrupt people get to-gether very fast, honest people often suffer from ego problems and do not come to-gether into a single platform to fight the evil”. This must change for a brighter dawn.
J.Shriyan
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