Dalit Becomes Me: The Perversion of Caste and Relegated Casteism in Indian Higher Education

This paper critically investigates how Dalit students experience caste-based discrimination in higher education in India, focusing on how caste-and-class identities shape their personal and academic lives. Drawing on Frantz Fanon’s concept of colonial identity distortion, the analysis extends this idea to casteism, arguing that caste "perverts" Dalit identities, relegating them to subjugation and moral degradation. Ambedkar’s notion of Manuski—human dignity—further reveals how caste-based exclusion dehumanises Dalits within academic institutions.

Although caste-related self-harm and suicide have sparked public-debate, there has been insufficient sustained academic research exploring these phenomena, particularly from a Dalit perspective. Instead of directly addressing caste as psycho-social issue, the discourse has often focused on broader sociopolitical frameworks, overlooking lived-realities of caste oppression and the emotional toll it takes on marginalised students. Additionally, the dual-pressures of navigating overt and subtle casteist biases and lacking access to crucial mental health resources, peer support, and solidarity-affirmation culminate in severe distress in themselves. This paper highlights urgent need to explore the underlying causes behind behavioural patterns exhibited by Dalit students, such as their responses to institutional-discrimination, policies, and legal rulings, especially in education.

Utilising Goffman’s theory of stigma and Bourdieu’s concept of symbolic-power, the paper critiques the current educational system's failure to support Dalit students, exacerbating the emotional and psychological burden they face. The analysis draws on the tragic suicides of Dalit students in IITs, central universities, and institutions across India. This paper attempts to exemplify how casteist exclusion warps both access to education & students' sense of self-worth, signalling a psycho-social crisis.