'We Need To Redefine Our Notions Of Merit In Terms Of A More Inclusive & Plural Society':Justice DY Chandrachud [Full Text Of Lecture]

This is the transcript of the speech delivered by Supreme Court judge Justice DY Chandrachud on the topic "Realising Diversity- Making Differences In Higher Education" at IIT Delhi on September 6."Today marks the fourth anniversary of the decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Navtej Singh Johar. Decriminalisation of section 377 of the penal code has enabled queer people to emerge as legally empowered citizens and demand their rights rightfully and proudly. Structural changes are still needed to ensure that we are able to extend these positive legal actions to marginalised queer people who continue to face intersecting oppressions", said Justice Chandrachud.Continuing, he discussed, "Intersectional discrimination is not something which is confined only to the queer, but certain groups of queer people, due to their class and caste positions, are more susceptible and vulnerable to the abuse of law, both in terms of material and symbolic harm. Discrimination is intersectional in the sense that our identities intersect. The experience of, say, a Dalit blind woman would be very different from the experiences of a Dalit male student, or for that matter, from the experiences of a student from a non-Dalit segment of the society who is or is not visually challenged, in the day to day life. It is these intersectional identities which are different. We are an amalgam of a plurality of identities. I don't think anyone of us has any singular identity which is definitive of the life that we live or of our experiences. But the much-needed first legal steps that the Supreme Court was able to take was the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Navtej and that would not have been possible without the stories and experiences of the petitioners and countless others. One of the connected petitions was named Anvesh Pokkulluri v. Union of India before the Supreme Court. It comprised of a spirited chorus of 20 students and alumni from various IITs across, representing Pragati, a support group for the LGBTQ community. The youngest petitioner before the court was actually a young 19-year-old student of IIT Delhi. By taking a stand before the court in section 377 litigation, students and alumni of IITs help in building a modern contemporary India not just by advancing her technical skills but by taking the country closer to her constitutional values".Justice Chandrachud elaborated, "I must share with all of you that when I got the invite for this inaugural talk, I read and re-read the quote which the Office of Diversity and Inclusion have added in their proposal. The line which is taken from Navtej said that our Constitution above all is an essay in the acceptance of diversity. It is founded on the vision of an inclusive society which accommodates plural ways of life. I pondered over what it means in our educational institutions. In my understanding, what it signifies for all universities and institutes of higher education is that they must look like the India which they represent. If IIT Delhi wants to continue to fulfil its vision of contributing to India's growth through excellence in scientific and technical education and research of serving as a valuable resource for society, then a diverse, equitable, inclusive and accessible IIT is needed. As we celebrate 60 years of IIT Delhi and we celebrate the establishment of the office of diversity and inclusion, this may be an appropriate moment to reflect all the transformative possibilities of IITs by looking at the intersection of two long-standing concerns of the State- education and social justice. Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar's was a clarion call to educate, agitate and organise. He repeatedly emphasised the importance of education for the emancipation of the oppressed sections of our society. However in his address to the constituent assembly on 25 November 1949 Dr. Ambedkar also recognised that independent India was entering Into a life of contradictions, the functioning of higher education in India then as of now represents this contradiction between hope and disappointment, between promoting social mobility and legitimising existing inequalities in the name of credentials and degrees and merit. The idea of the IITs took shape in the late 1940s when the Sarkar committee recommended the creation of higher technical educational institutions. In 1956 Jawaharlal Nehru speaking at the first annual convocation of IIT Kharagpur believed the IITs to be representing India's urges, India's future in the making. In 1961 the College of engineering was established and later declared as an institution of national importance. It is now known as the Indian Institute of technology Delhi.However, Nazir Ahmad, one of the members of the Sarkar committee had cautioned against the possibility of institutional isolation of the IITs and feared undemocratic limits to access. One of the criticisms which has been levelled against IITs is that they have diverted state resources From primary education...

'We Need To Redefine Our Notions Of Merit In Terms Of A More Inclusive & Plural Society':Justice DY Chandrachud [Full Text Of Lecture]

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