Bharathidasan, a Dalit scholar currently pursuing a PhD in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, has leveled serious accusations of harassment against officials within the Tamil Nadu ministry. The scholar invoked the name of Rohith Vemula—a Dalit student whose 2016 death sparked nationwide protests regarding caste-based discrimination in Indian academia—to characterize his own experiences with the ministry.

While Bharathidasan claims that his interactions with ministry officials involved systemic harassment and discriminatory practices, the officials named in the complaint have categorically denied these allegations. The ministry has not provided specific details regarding the nature of the interactions, but they maintain that the scholar’s claims are unfounded. Because the situation involves conflicting accounts between an individual scholar and government representatives, the specific incidents leading to the accusation remain under investigation or dispute. No formal findings have been released to corroborate either the scholar’s claims of harassment or the ministry’s defense of their conduct.