Hours after Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi held the NDA government responsible for Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide - Union External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj in a startling revelation claimed that the scholar was not a Dalit.
Speaking to reporters in Maharashtra, Swaraj said, "As per my information the student (Rohith) was not Dalit. He was projected as a Dalit student by some people. The issue was highlighted and claiming that he was a Dalit was baseless."
Sources said Rohith belonged to the Vaddera community which is a backward caste and not Dalit.
Rohith was one of the five Dalit scholars who was expelled by the University of Hyderabad in August 2015 for allegedly attacking a student activist belonging to Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).
He was doing his PhD in science technology and society studies for the past two years.
On January 17, Rohith managed to enter the NRS hostel, locked himself and hanged himself reportedly after being depressed over his expulsion from the university.
Recently, the university has revoked suspension of the four students, following uproar over the suicide.
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