Jamia Students Rally Behind Suspended Dalit Professor, Slam 'Caste Bias' and FIR Threats in Exam Question Fury

New Delhi: Students from the Department of Social Work at Jamia Millia Islamia University have voiced fierce support for their suspended Dalit professor, Virendra Balaji Shahare, following his suspension on December 23, over a question in the "Social Problems in India" exam paper for B.A. Hons. Social Work. In a detailed statement, they insist he has done nothing wrong and accuse the administration of arbitrary overreach, selective targeting, and eroding academic freedom.

Highlighting the question's alignment with the syllabus, which they say mandates critical analysis of marginalization, discrimination, violence, and structural injustices, the students attached a syllabus copy to underscore their point. As trainees in social work, they argue that punishing such teaching "undermines the foundation of social science education."

The students pointed to Jamia's curriculum, including courses on Dalit and Minority Studies, Social Inclusion, Human Rights, and Social Justice, which they say rely on "critical inquiry, structural analysis, and examination of social inequality and marginalisation." These programs, they noted, show the university's own endorsement of such approaches as "central to scholarly inquiry in the social sciences." Against this backdrop, they decried the suspension as "an erosion of academic freedom and intellectual autonomy," amounting to "an impermissible narrowing of scholarly discourse" and a "delegitimisation of perspectives already endorsed by the university’s academic structure." This, they warned, imposes "an unjustified limitation on students’ right to critical engagement" and clashes with the institution's "statutory and pedagogical obligations."

In a pointed section on "Collective Responsibility, Selective Targeting," the students emphasized that Jamia exam papers "do not pass unilaterally." They undergo moderation, scrutiny by committees, and final approval by the Controller of Examinations, who holds "statutory responsibility for the final conduct of examinations." Yet, they charged, "only Prof. Shahare has been singled out," with no scrutiny of the moderation committees, departmental vetting, or the Controller.

This "selective action raises serious concerns about procedural fairness and institutional bias," they said. They highlighted that "it is impossible to ignore the fact that Prof. Shahare is a Dalit academic," suggesting "making an example of him appears institutionally easier than questioning higher authorities or collective bodies." Such moves, they argued, reflect "a disturbing pattern where individuals from marginalised communities bear the brunt of punitive action, while systemic accountability is evaded," ultimately "reproducing structural caste hierarchies within academic institutions" and contradicting a central university's "constitutional and ethical commitments."

The students also condemned the prospect of a police FIR against the professor as a "dangerous and unjust escalation," deeming it "deeply alarming" and "disproportionate." This, they warned, "sets a dangerous precedent of criminalising pedagogy," where "academic disagreements or public discomfort cannot and must not be converted into criminal liability."

Outlining their demands, the students called for:

1. Immediate and permanent revocation of Professor Shahare's suspension and any further legal actions related to the allegations.

2. A public apology from the university for wrongly accusing, defaming, and causing him reputational harm.

3. An assurance that no faculty member, especially from marginalised communities will be scapegoated for collective institutional decisions.

4. A reaffirmation of the university’s commitment to academic freedom, social justice, and constitutional values.

They concluded with unyielding resolve: "We stand with our professor. We reject this injustice. And we will continue to speak until it is corrected!"