"PM and HM should step forward and tell country about new UGC regulation": Congress MP Manoj Kumar

Speaking to ANI, Kumar, raising the issue of caste discrimination, said casteism has existed for centuries and questioned why it is being acknowledged only now.

Calling for an early caste census, the Congress MP said it would present a clear picture of social realities, echoing Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's repeated demand on the issue.

"I think PM and HM should step forward and tell the country about the UGC Bill that has been brought. They should make the Bill clear to the country's people. Casteism is being discussed right now. I belong to the Dalit community. Are people understanding casteism only now? 3000 years ago, when brooms were tied to the feet of the people of my community, did you not understand casteism then?...When students like Rohith Vemula die due to ragging, did you not think of casteism?...You speak of Sanatana Hindu. Are SC, ST, OBC not part of this?...If you ask me, I would like to say one thing that caste census should be done in India at the earliest. Picture will be clear. Rahul Gandhi has been raising this issue on every stage. I too am saying the same...," he said.

Congress leader Udit Raj also hit out at what he called a "casteist narrative" being built around the proposed equity committee in the new UGC regulation, accusing the BJP of spreading misinformation to polarise voters along caste lines.

He asked why SCs, STs and OBCs are being portrayed as separate from Hindus, and said legal processes function on evidence and judicial scrutiny, not prejudice.

"...I have read the gazette notification. Its committee is being discussed. It is being said that if the committee makes one-sided decisions, it can be against 'Savarna' students...Lies are being spread that the equity committee will make one-sided decisions...I believe that BJP is probably playing a game that 100% of the 'Savarnas' vote for them and it wants to appease SCs, STs, OBCs too...Why is a narrative being built? Secondly, are SCs, ST and OBCs not Hindus?...If a committee has been built to stop discrimination, it is good. But the controversy over it, that one-sided action will be taken against 'Savarnas' and how can action be taken against evidence? Be it a rape or sexual assault or dowry - all laws function just like this. Raise this question there too, that how is a case being registered without evidence? It is the court which does this. This is a wrong and casteist mindset," he said.

This came after new rules notified by the UGC on January 13, which update its 2012 regulations on the same subject, have sparked widespread criticism from general category students, who argue that the framework could lead to discrimination against them.

The new regulations, introduced to curb caste-based discrimination in colleges and universities, require institutions to establish special committees and helplines to address complaints, especially from SC, ST, and OBC students.

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday sought to allay concerns over the new UGC regulations, assuring that the law would not be misused and that there would be no discrimination in its implementation.

Speaking to the reporters, Pradhan said, "I assure everyone there will be no discrimination and no one can misuse the law." (ANI)