Emergence of Dalit-Bahujan Students’ Movement: A Study of University Campuses in Western Odisha

Abstract

Historically, it has been observed that student movements have been essential in bringing about social change in the world. In the Indian context, the majority of these student organizations, whether they follow a leftist or a rightist ideology, have always tried to hide their Brahminical foundations and have ignored the problems of marginalized students on university campuses. When it comes to Odisha, one can witness the Brahmin and Karana castes’ historical monopoly over political power in the state, and as a result, neglecting caste issues in political parties and other academic institutions in many ways. In this project, the researcher has followed the qualitative approach and used the phenomenological technique to understand the lived experiences of the Dalit-Bahujan students located on three university campuses in western Odisha. The present study has demonstrated clearly how the hardships, struggles and measures taken by the Dalit-Bahujan student movements on the university campuses. Finally, it clearly outlined the different elements that motivated the Dalit-Bahujan students to join the movement and helped them to recognize their own responsibility for passing on this legacy to future generations.