Caste in Classrooms: Discrimination in Higher Education
https://img-2.outlookindia.com/outlook-money-magazine/summy-art-lg.svgSummary of this article
[*]Every day practices on campuses continue to marginalise students and faculty through notions of “merit”, language, and cultural capital
[*]Delayed degrees, stalled promotions, verbal abuse, professional isolation, and even deaths reveal that caste discrimination is not incidental but structural
[*]Concentrated power among academic authorities and ineffective complaint mechanisms discourage reporting
“There will be outcastes as long as there are castes. Nothing can emancipate the outcaste except the destruction of the caste system.”B. R. Ambedkar
Article 17 of the Indian Constitution states that “untouchability” is abolished and that its practice in any form is forbidden. Article 15 further provides that the State shall not discriminate against any citizen solely on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth, or any of these. Yet, in everyday life, caste hierarchies persist. Across campuses, it re-emerges through everyday academic power.
The persistence of caste in schools and colleges, long believed to be sites of upward mobility and rational thought, turns these institutions into places where notions of “merit”, cultural capital, language, and access (or the lack of it) are highlighted and ridiculed. This discrimination spans the country, from Kashmir to Kerala. There is no respite. These case studies do not represent isolated incidents but rather a systemic pattern.
They point to unchecked authority vested in heads of departments and to weak, ineffective redressal mechanisms. Complainants are routinely questioned about their motives. Very few cases of caste discrimination are reported, largely due to the fear of retaliation, social exclusion, and prolonged struggles with institutional mechanisms that often end up protecting those already in positions of power.
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