Prestigious Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, is in news but for wrong reasons. According to the student body of the IIT-B, the authorities have issued a fine of Rs 10,000 to a student for protesting against the new food segregation policy on campus. The student body, Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC), took up a post on X regarding the imposed fine on Monday, October 2.
The post claimed the new policy is a modern-time untouchability: “@iitbombay has imposed a fine of ₹ 10,000 on the students who had stood against the food segregation policy of the institute by a peaceful act of individual civil disobedience. This action of the admin is similar to a Khap Panchayat (caste council) acting to uphold untouchability in modern times.”
A month ago, an email was circulated by the Mess Council to every resident student informing them about the six designated “vegetarian-only” seats in the common mess area of the three hostels of the university. The email concerned the importance of a pleasant dining experience for every individual, as some people can’t stand the “smell of non-vegetarian food”.
The Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC) stood against the policy, as per reports. “The need to demarcate separate eating spaces with an idea of purity is to reinforce the superiority of savarnas on campus and deem their eating habits better than those of DBA students,” APPSC said.
To protest against the Mess policy, three students on September 28 deliberately took non-vegetarian food to the reserved “vegetarian-only” seats. In response, the council imposed a high fine worth ten thousand and has asked to investigate other members of the protesting group. “This act was a premeditated attempt to disrupt the peace and harmony within the mess, in defiance of the advice provided by the associate dean of student affairs,” the mess council said.