Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) chief Prakash Ambedkar took to X (formerly Twitter) on Friday and claimed that a man was forced to forfeit his employment opportunity at Heathrow Airport in London after Pune's Modern College of Arts, Science and Commerce refused to verify his academic credentials because he was Dalit.
Ambedkar wrote, "Prem Birhade, a young Dalit who recently graduated from the prestigious University of Sussex, was forced to forfeit a hard-earned employment opportunity at Heathrow Airport in London. The reason? His former college, Modern College of Arts, Science and Commerce in Pune, refused to verify his academic credentials, despite him submitting all required documentation. Why? Because Prem is a Dalit!"
Ambedkar said that the college's principal, Dr Nivedita Gajanan Ekbote, serves as the Maharashtra Vice-President of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, the youth wing of the BJP.
"Given her political and ideological alignment with the Manuwadi BJP, one can only imagine the extent to which caste prejudice must have shaped her actions against SC, ST and OBC students in her academic career," the VBA chief alleged.
"The verification was provided when Prem had gone to London to study. When Prem requested the same verification again for his job, the college’s administration enquired about his caste! Prem’s journey from Nardubar, a poor tribal district, to the UK was not an easy one. Prem’s case is a glaring example of how systemic caste discrimination continues to haunt Dalit youth, even after they break through enormous social and economic barriers. This case demands urgent attention and accountability. Prem’s story is not just his own; it is the story of countless Dalit students whose aspirations are crushed because of caste-discrimination," Ambedkar concluded.
The Free Press Journal tried contacting the college with the phone numbers listed on their website, but there was no response.
