NEW DELHI: A conference on caste and race organised at IIT Delhi earlier this month has triggered sharp criticism over its content and choice of speakers, following which the institute has constituted a fact-finding committee and assured appropriate action in line with institutional protocols.
The conference, titled “Critical Philosophy of Caste and Race”, was organised by the Critical Philosophy of Caste and Race (CPCR), a research study group functioning under the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at IIT Delhi. Details of the agenda and speakers were widely circulated on social media, with several users alleging that radical activists were invited to present what they described as a “single-sided view on caste.” One of the sessions, which reportedly compared the situation of Dalits in India with that of Palestinians, drew sharp backlash from multiple quarters. IIT faculty member Divya Dwivedi was among the organisers of the conference. She has previously been at the centre of controversies over her remarks on caste, Hinduism and majoritarian politics. Responding to the criticism, IIT Delhi said it has sought an explanation from the concerned faculty member and set up a committee to examine the matter.
