It was 2018-19 when I struggled to submit my MPhil dissertation. Still, my upper caste supervisor was not letting me submit it because I was working on Dalits of Bihar. I belonged to the highly backward castes of Bihar. Among them, only a few women reach central universities and pursue research. Still, their struggle did not end until the university; universities also had to deal with upper-caste professors who discouraged backward castes from pursuing research.
They demoralise us on many grounds; in their eyes, we cannot speak English, we cannot write English, and we are not intelligent enough to submit our dissertation on time because we are weak students compared to their upper caste students. For them, we cannot research the History of Dalits because they do not want us to be more aware of the caste reality of the country. They try their every bit to maintain their hegemony in academics after a long fight with upper caste professors of the department, research council and Vice Chancellor’s office for one and half years, I reached out to National Commission for Backward Classes and they issued notice on my behalf and called for hearing many times for another 6-7 months, my MPhil was submitted.
When I was struggling through all these things, I was all alone because in my university, researchers are not allowed in the student union, and I always wished that there was no organisation for me to raise my voice. Thanks to NCBC, who helped me at a crucial time to get my degree. Still, I felt there should be an organisation for students dedicated to Other Backward Classes to raises their voices.
In 2020, I met Kiran through a friend who introduced me to Kiran, the president of All India Other Backward Classes Student Union AIOBCSA and discussed the OBC issues and the organisation’s motive. I decided to join the organisation because, in my struggle days, I was searching for such an organisation. But unfortunately, I was unaware of such an organisation that can raise the voice of backwards.
About All India Other Backward Classes Student Union
This organisation was started in the year 2018 by the students of the University of Hyderabad, in the backdrop of the violation of the reservation policy for the 2018-19 faculty recruitment process in the University of Hyderabad, in which roster points are sidelined and deprived at Professor and Associate Professor levels. The organisation had filed RTIs and represented them to the university. But it did not get any response, then the organisation decided to organise OBC Satyagraha and filed a complaint with National Commission for Backward Classes.
The NCBC held three public hearings at the University of Hyderabad and New Delhi. As an organisation, it represented the case, argued with all evidence and asked for justice. The then Chairperson of NCBC issued clear directions to the university to rectify the mistakes and notify all shortfall OBC positions. In response, the university corrected the rosters, uploaded them on the website and announced all shortfall OBC faculty positions. It is a big success for the organisation.
The organisation is also active on political fronts; it met with many political leaders and put forward its demand to raise in the parliament. In 2020, it met with the Education Minister of India, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan and discussed various issues related to OBCs. The meeting raised the demand for the caste census and highlighted the deaths and dropouts of backward students in the universities due to caste discrimination; it asked for the OBC cell in all the universities where students from the backward community can address their concerns.
The organisation also met Member of Rajya Sabha K. Laxman Garu for the implementation of OBC reservation in state agricultural universities. As a result, the demand has been raised in the Rajya Sabha, and serious attention has been given to the issue.
The organisation also organised intellectual discussions on backward issues; recently, it organised OBC Intellectuals Meet at the Constitution Club of India, where many intellectuals took part and addressed the concerns related to OBCs; the highlight of the session was Professor Hari Narke, who made us realise that there are very few Budget allocated to OBCs and if allocated those funds were not utilised by the concerned ministry, he also told that the most significant population the country has a minor share in the academia, and we hardly see a professor from OBC community in the central university, till 2018 there was no single professor from OBC community.
The OBC also organised a webinar on Savitribai’s Phule birth anniversary, where it invited women speakers to speak on OBC issues and talked about the Way Forward to increase the participation of OBC women in the public arena.
Last year, it also put its concern in a webinar organised by Oxford University where it discussed the issue of caste census and how it is crucial for the community because despite having a vast population, the community is given only 27 per cent of reservation, it also stated that if the government conducts the caste census, it will be an easy process for the government to allocate the fund and dedicate the schemes to the more disadvantaged population.
Recently, it called Professor Ravi Kisana to talk on OBC issues and how to increase OBC participation, especially women’s participation in academics. The organisation is also active in filing RTIs where OBC reservation is violated; it had raised the demand for proper reservation of OBC reservation in UPSC, UPSSC and other competitive exams.
It has written a letter to the Education Minister of India to generate the National Fellowship of OBC students because, since last year, the students have not received their fellowship, creating a situation where many are dropping their research. Many are in a state of depression.
AIOBCSA is the first national organisation for OBC students, and it is active in more than 20 universities in India. Its member constitutes from every corner of the country and raises their voices on regional levels too. I joined the organisation to prevent students like me from the mental trauma and anxiety given to them because of their caste and gender. It has provided the OBC students and intellectuals with the best platform to address their concerns. I hope the organisation will work for the OBC community with full zeal and enthusiasm.