Students at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay alleged food discrimination towards non-vegetarians at several hostels, stating that those who consume non-vegetarian food are not allowed to sit in a particular part of the mess and the plates provided to them are also different. While several “vegetarians only” posters were sighted on the walls on Saturday, causing an uproar, the college administration refuted the claims as “not true.”
Food discrimination is allegedly being practised in the mess at hostels no. 12, 13 and 14, according to reports. Students who consume non-vegetarian food are not allowed to sit in a particular section of the mess and different plates are provided for them. They claim that this practice has been ongoing for years and they previously requested an RTI response from the administration reading the matter. However, the administration has denied any such discrimination.
Posters of “Vegetarians only are allowed to sit here” were put up again, raising concerns over this issue.
When contacted, authorities dismissed the information as “not true” and stated that no such discrimination was being practiced.
News18 Accesses RTI Reply
According to a RTI response dated November 29, 2022, seen by CNN-News18, several questions were raised concerning the food practices at IIT Bombay hostels. These included: how many hostels have Jain food spaces in messes where non-vegetarian students are not allowed to take egg or meat products; what penalties and punishments are imposed on students who bring non-vegetarian sections into the Jain food messes; minutes of the meetings that decided to have separated eating food spaces; how much money has been collected as fines for violating the “rule” and what measures are taken by the mess to cook Jain food served in the counters to “isolate” them from the food cooked for other students.
The response from the administration dated December 19, 2022, stated that there are no Jain food spaces for students (vegetarians) in any of the IIT Bombay hostels. It said no penalties or punishments have been imposed in any of the hostels and no meetings or provisions related to separated eating food spaces. Additionally, it said that no money has been collected as a fine for any such violations on its premises.
What IIT Bombay Said
Meanwhile, according to a PTI report, the institute claimed that they were aware of the posters in the canteen but did not know who had put them up. The hostel’s general secretary stated that there are no fixed seats for people consuming different categories of food and the institute remains unaware of the individuals responsible for the posters.
The student collective, Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC), expressed strong condemnation of the incident and took action by tearing down the posters. “Though RTIs and emails to the hostel’s general secretary revealed that there is no policy for food segregation at the institute, some individuals have taken it upon themselves to designate certain mess areas as ‘vegetarians only’ and force other students to leave that area,” the AAPSC said.
After the incident, the hostel’s general secretary sent an email to all students clarifying, “There is a counter for Jain distribution in the hostel’s mess, but there is no designated sitting space for those who consume Jain food.”
“Such behaviour is unacceptable and no student has the right to remove another student from any area of the mess on the grounds that it is reserved for a particular community. If any such incident is repeated, we will be forced to take strict action against those involved,” he stated in the email.
Comments
0 comment