IIT-Kanpur accused of caste based discrimination

As Indian Institutes of Technology across the country begin campus placements, a complaint has been filed with the Education Ministry, Social Justice Ministry and the National Commissions for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes, alleging that the Placements Office at IIT-Kanpur was allowing recruiting companies to discriminate against prospective candidates based on their caste or socio-economic category.

Dheeraj Singh, alumnus and founder of a yet-to-be registered NGO, the Global IIT SC/ST Alumni Support Group, has said in his complaint that IITs are profiling SC students using placement forms. "Job aspirants at IIT-Bombay must mandatorily fill in caste category details. At IIT-Delhi, they also asked for JEE (Advanced) ranks. At Kanpur and Guwahati, they want these details in students' profiles, and are facilitating recruiters who seek such information," said Singh, adding it is a blatant attempt to discriminate against such students.

We have several students' testimonials on profiling done by the placement offices. Some have expressed fears that private sector companies might weed them out based on their category and JEE rank data," said Singh. "If a student has scored a good cumulative grade point average after his four-year course, how is the JEE rank relevant?" asked Singh, who has written two complaints to the Commission. National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) member Anju Bala said on receiving the complaint, they will send notices to the institutions.The complaint said some recruiters too have sought JEE ranks of students, warning that it could lead to discrimination.The institutes should ensure that category and JEE ranks are not disclosed to recruiting companies, unless they are providing reservation benefits, said the complaint filed with the NCSC. It also demanded that placement offices should not make it mandatory for students to fill in category details unless the student is seeking a job in a PSU.After the death by suicide of a Dalit student in IIT Bombay early this year, SC/ST/OBC students from across IITs had come forward with their experiences - highlighting widespread caste-based discrimination they face.