The director, dean, and six other faculty members of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB) have been accused of violating the constitutional rights of minority students and staff, with serious allegations of caste-based discrimination and harassment.
These charges stem from a report submitted to the principal secretary of the Social Welfare Department of Karnataka on November 26 by the directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement (DCRE), which confirms that caste atrocities were committed by IIMB’s leadership, including director Dr Rishikesha T Krishnan and dean Dr Dinesh Kumar, stated a report by The New Indian Express.
Following this, on December 9, the Social Welfare Department instructed the Bengaluru Police Commissioner to register an FIR against the accused faculty members. However, as of now, no action has been taken by the police.
The investigation was triggered by a complaint from Professor Gopal Das, an associate professor of Marketing at IIMB. Prof Das, an IIT Kharagpur graduate, joined IIMB in 2018. It is said that although Prof Das belongs to the Dalit community, he never sought reservation benefits and applied for the associate professor role based on his qualifications and merit alone.
Recognised as one of the top 2% professors worldwide by Stanford University for five consecutive years, Das has been vocal about addressing caste-based discrimination within the institution.
As per the DCRE’s report, the issue is beyond Professor Das, and it accuses Dr Rishikesha Krishnan and Dr Dinesh Kumar of publicising Professor Das’ caste identity through mass emails, which contributed to creating a discriminatory and hostile work environment.
The DCRE also noted that IIMB failed to establish a grievance redressal mechanism for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe members, as mandated by law, according to the report by The New Indian Express.
The issue came to light after Das' promotion was put on hold due to harassment complaints made by doctoral students. IIMB initiated an inquiry into the matter, which included a committee member from the SC category.
The inquiry confirmed that the students' complaints were valid.
IIMB, in a statement, claimed that Das received significant research and teaching incentives, including key leadership roles such as chairperson of the Institutional Review Board, member of the Career Development Services Committee, and member of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
Furthermore, he has been allowed to teach courses of his choice across various academic programmes.
IIMB asserts that the delay in his promotion was due to the need to address harassment complaints, following standard institutional procedures. However, the allegations of caste-based discrimination only surfaced after his promotion was delayed, according to IIMB.
The institute maintains that his promotion was withheld as part of the regular academic review process and not due to personal bias. IIMB said that it has provided all evidence to the DCRE, though it has yet to receive a copy of the DCRE’s report.
It also clarified that Diversity and Inclusion Grievance Redressal Committee (DIGRC) at IIMB dismissed Das' allegations of harassment and discrimination, finding them unfounded.
