Dalit PhD scholar Rohith Vemula, along with four other members of the Ambedkar Students’ Association, were banned from the hostels and administration buildings of Hyderabad Central University on 16 December 2015.
On 3 January 2016, Rohith Vemula, Dontha Prashanth, Vijay Kumar, Seshiah Chemudugunta, and Velupula Sunkanna were evicted from the university’s hostels. The five of them alleged that Hyderabad Central University had singled them out and was targeting them as they were Dalit scholars.
They set up a makeshift house called ‘velivada’ in the university’s shopping complex area, or ShopCom as it was popularly known.
In an effort to raise awareness about what they called a targeted attack against them by the university, Rohith and his friends were planning a Facebook campaign for the same.
As a part of the campaign, the featured video – shot at ‘velivada’ – shows Rohith Vemula describing his experience, his roots, and his past.
Before the campaign could come to fruition, Rohith Vemula hanged himself with a banner of the Ambedkar Students Association, in Room 207, of the Hyderabad Central University’s hostel.
Months later, Rohith’s friend, Munna Sanaki, uploaded this video to Youtube, in which Rohith states that he is a Dalit, and briefly talks about his childhood.
The video gets cut off, abruptly, and in conversation with The Quint, Munna said that this was because some visitors had come to talk to the boys staying at the ‘velivada’.
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