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May 17, 2016

India: Rohit Vemula's Family gets a home but with help from the Muslim Right

The Hindu, Hyderabad, May 16, 2016

A home of their own for Rohith Vemula’s family

Nikhila Henry

The house is expected to come up at Koppuravuru, which is located between Vijayawada and Guntur towns.

Four months after Rohith Vemula committed suicide in the University of Hyderabad, his family is now a bit close to achieving the deceased research scholar’s dream of having a house of his own.

In a bid to support the family which owned no property, All India Muslim League has offered to construct a two-bedroom house on 160 sq yards of land that was offered by Andhra Pradesh Retired IAS and IPS Officers Association. After property registration which is now under way, Kerala Unit of the Muslim League has promised to employ local contractors to construct the house within three months.

Rohith Vemula, a 26-year-old research scholar of University of Hyderabad committed suicide on January 17 after the varsity administration had expelled him and four other students from their hostels in what was called a disciplinary action.

The goodwill seems to have come as a relief to the family as both Radhika Vemula, Rohith’s mother and Raja Vemula, his brother, said they accepted the sponsorship wholeheartedly as it was a heart-warming grand gesture from both the parties. For Raja Vemula, the promise of a home brings to end a certain insecurity which he had faced growing up.

Long-time dream

“When we were young in age we lived at our grandmother’s house and later my mother moved to a small rented accommodation. A home was always our dream,” Raja Vemula told The Hindu , wondering why State governments of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana had not come to their aid even as help was flowing in from other quarters. Ms. Radhika had brought up her three children including Rohith Vemula living in single-room houses.

Muslim League takes up task

The Muslim League took up the housing task after University of Hyderabad’s Muslim Students Federation (MSF), a student wing of the League, took up the matter at the State committee level. The MSF has been closely associated with Ambedkar Students Association (ASA) to which Rohith Vemula belonged.

The house is expected to come up at Koppuravuru, which is located between Vijayawada and Guntur towns. The Muslim League has budgeted the house at Rs. 20 lakh.

“The Muslim League is committed to supporting Rohith’s family just as we supported riot victims in Muzaffarnagar, UP and Bihar,” said C.K. Subair, general secretary of youth wing of Kerala unit of Muslim League, who was in Hyderabad on Sunday.

All India Muslim League has offered to construct a two-bedroom house on 160 sq yards of land that was offered by Andhra Pradesh Retired IAS and IPS Officers Association


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