North-Eastern student from Kirori Mal College harassed with racial comments by other students.
A student at Delhi University’s Kirori Mal College (KMC) was harassed and called ‘Coronavirus’ by another student on campus. In response to the incident, the North East Cell of KMC issued a statement condemning the use of racial slurs against the students who hail from the North Eastern part of the country and expressed regret at the normalisation of such terms and overshadowing the racial and discriminatory undertones that these slurs carry.
In the statement by the North East Cell of KMC, a student expresses the helplessness felt by students who face such harassment and the fear for their safety and security. The student also mentions how such incidents makes them wonder if they are part of the same country that “prides itself in unity in diversity and secularism”. The statement by the Cell also expresses its concern for finding a ‘solution to this disgusting practice’ and states that the students experience such unwelcomed and discriminatory comments from students as well as faculty members. They also strongly condemned the harassment, saying that ‘Such behaviour should not be tolerated and must be reported immediately’, while reassuring the students that they stand in solidarity with all the students that face discrimination and encouraged them to come forward with their stories and support each other.
The student who faced the harassment along with others who have had similar experiences wrote a letter to the Principal who apologised to the students and promised to make an effort to prevent such incidents and conduct a program to sensitise the students, and said that any student who uses such language would be identified and strict action would be taken against them.
Feature Image Credits: DU Beat Archives
Tashi Dorjay Sherpa
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