Rohith Vemula case: What Telangana Police's closure report said about his Dalit identity, suicide

The Telangana Police have filed a closure report before a local court in its probe into the death of Rohith Vemula in 2016, a student of the University of Hyderabad (UoH). The closure report claimed that the research scholar was not a Dalit and died by suicide as he feared that his "real identity" would be discovered. The then UoH vice-chancellor Appa Rao Podile and incumbent Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya were among the accused in the case. 

The Cyberabad police that investigated the case informed the court that Rohith Vemula did not belong to Scheduled Caste and that he was aware of it, reported news agency PTI.

• "The deceased had multiple issues worrying him which could have driven him to commit suicide." 

• "In addition to this, the deceased himself was aware that he did not belong to Scheduled Caste and that his mother got him a SC certificate. This could be one of the constant fears as the exposure of the same would result in a loss of his academic degrees that he earned over the years and be compelled to face prosecution."

• "Despite best efforts, no evidence could be found to establish that the actions of the accused have driven the deceased to commit suicide."

(If you are having suicidal thoughts, or are worried about a friend or need emotional support, someone is always there to listen. Call Sneha Foundation - 04424640050, Tele Manas - 14416 (available 24x7) or iCall, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences' helpline - 02225521111, which is available Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 10 pm.)