UoH students protest alleged discriminatory remarks against LGBTQIA+ community

Students of the University of Hyderabad staged a protest condemning alleged discriminatory remarks against the LGBTQIA+ community during a Hindi department seminar. The department later distanced itself from the speaker’s statements and assured steps to prevent such incidents.

Hyderabad: Condemning recent discriminatory remarks made on the LGBTQIA+ community during a seminar hosted by the Department of Hindi, the University of Hyderabad (UoH) students staged a protest on the varsity campus here on Thursday.

The speaker Dr. Neerja Madhav, according to students, made harmful assertions regarding the LGBTQIA + community, labelling homosexuality as “unnatural” and alleged that the community was responsible for spread of diseases like AIDS.

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The SFI UoH unit demanded the department issue a formal statement condemning the remarks and reaffirm the department’s commitment to inclusivity. The student association also demanded immediate and regular implementation of a mandatory gender and sexuality sensitization workshops for all students and faculty within the Hindi department.

Meanwhile, the department issued a clarification stating that it did not agree with statements made by speaker Dr. Neerja Madhav during the seminar. “The speaker is solely responsible for the statement and the department has no connection with it,” the department said, adding that it would ensure that such incidents would not recur.