The Bengaluru police have registered a case against Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bangalore Director Rishikesh T Krishnan, Dean (Faculty) Dinesh Kumar, and six other faculty members for alleged caste discrimination against Associate Professor Gopal Das, a prominent Dalit academic.
The FIR follows an investigation by the Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement (DCRE), which substantiated claims of caste-based harassment. Those named in the FIR include faculty members Sainesh G, Srinivas Praka, Chetan Subramanian, Ashish Mishra, Srilatha Jonalagedu, and Rahul De. They face charges under Sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 2015, for allegedly insulting and abusing an SC/ST person.
The issue first came to light in January 2024 when Gopal Das wrote to President Droupadi Murmu during her visit to IIM Bangalore, alleging workplace exclusion, denial of resources, and caste-based harassment. Acting on the President’s directive, the DCRE initiated a probe in March.
By May, Das escalated his complaints to P. Manivannan, Principal Secretary of Karnataka’s Social Welfare Department, claiming intensified harassment after the investigation began. The DCRE’s probe, led by ADGP Arun Chakravarthy, concluded in November, presenting evidence of discrimination and workplace exclusion. It also accused Director Rishikesh Krishnan of revealing Gopal Das’s caste in a mass email and highlighted the denial of professional opportunities by Krishnan and Dean Dinesh Kumar.
On December 9, the Karnataka Social Welfare Department directed the Bengaluru Commissioner to take action under the SC/ST Act, leading to the FIR being filed.