IIT Delhi takes back 3 expelled Dalit students

New Delhi: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi on Wednesday cancelled the expulsion of three Dalit students, but said the remaining 17 against whom similar action was taken for "poor performance" would not be reinducted.

In a mail to IANS, the registrar's office said the special review committee (SRC) had several meetings with the expelled students from June 20 to June 25 and examined all available records.

"After examining the records and discussing with the students, the committee determined that all applicable academic and administrative procedures had been followed in all cases without exception," the registrar's office said.

"Further, during the discussion, no case of discrimination on the basis of caste was brought up by any of the students or their parents. The committee has concluded that the termination of registration of students is as per the rules of the institute," it added.

However, the registrar said the committee on June 30 recommended a lenient view towards three students, including two from the scheduled caste category.

"The director has since revoked the termination of these three students," the registrar said in the mail, which did not reveal the names of the students who have been taken back.

IIT Delhi said in spite of special focus and extra care for those from marginalized groups, a total of 20 students were "asked to leave in view of their very poor performance". Of these, 11 are from the Scheduled Caste category, one from the Scheduled Tribe category and the remaining eight are from the general category.

"The registration of such students is terminated so that they can avoid further waste of time and make alternate education plans for themselves," the registrar's office said. However, the expulsion of the three Dalit students has now been cancelled.

"It may be noted that the parents of students who perform poorly are constantly kept informed about the situation so that they can take timely corrective actions and advise their wards to take their studies more seriously."