ONE year has gone by since the sad demise of Rohith Vemula and still justice seems delayed and surely justice looks denied. The collective efforts by the central government, the state KCR-government and even the TDP government to iteratively nullify the national SC commission report certifying Rohith as dalit, and initiate fresh investigations after investigations to declare him not a dalit out-rightly shows the casteist nature of their involvements as organisations working in our society.

OVER the ages, people with disabilities have been subjected to discrimination, stigmatised, segregated and condemned to the margins. The disabled were abandoned at temple gates, driven out of homes and in some cases left to die or even killed. Disability, in popular perception, continues to be considered a punishment for sins committed in the past life. This is internalised by both the disabled and their families, who view it as a curse not only on themselves but also on those whom they are dependent on. The cultural antipathy to persons with disabilities is deep rooted.

In a statement issued on December 21, 2016, the Republican Party of India, Dalit Shoshan Mukti Manch, Bharatiya Khet Mazdoor Union, All India Agricultural Workers Union, National Coordination Committee on Dalit Rights, Rashtriya Dalit Manav Adhikar Andolan and the All India Dalit Rights Federation have jointly appealed for observing Rohith Vemula’s first anniversary on January 17, 2017. 

BHEEM from Purulia was rendering a self-composed song in his native dialect. He was narrating the experiences of disabled people like him for whom every day brought in new challenges and struggles. The disabled folk singer was one of the few who could make it to Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on December 3 from West Bengal. The rest of the Bengal contingent, nearing a thousand, thanks to inclement weather and consequent disruption of rail services were either stranded midway or had to abandon their journey even before they could commence it.

THE Communist Party of India (Marxist) held a two-day workshop on caste oppression for the Hindi speaking states. 68 comrades from 10 states attended the workshop. The workshop underscored that for developing the Party and the Left and democratic movement in the Hindi-speaking states, it is essential to take up social issues. Among the various social problems, the major issue is of the deep-rooted caste system and the caste oppression engendered by it. Class exploitation and caste oppression are inextricably intertwined.