‘Permanent victimhood’ remark puts JNU VC under fire; unions seek resignation

A remark by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) vice-chancellor (VC) Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit that Dalits were in a state of “permanent victimhood” has sparked a political storm on campus, with teachers’ bodies, student groups and politicians accusing her of making “casteist” statements and demanding her resignation.

In a podcast interview published on February 16, the VC said, “There's a permanent victimhood and you cannot progress by being permanently a victim or playing the victim card. This was done for Blacks. The same thing was brought for Dalits here. And you know the question is, by making somebody the devil, it's not easy to progress. It's more like a drug… temporarily trying to say this is the enemy, you shout at it and then you'll feel good (sic).”

Also read: JNU move to rusticate top student leaders over last year’s protest sparks row

The remarks were made in the context of discussions around the University Grants Commission (UGC) Equity Regulations 2026.

Leadership under fire

Responding to the criticism, Pandit told The Federal, “I did not mean that. I meant that wokes have written like this and those who opposed wokes had this to say about permanent victimhood and imaginary worlds being created.”

“On UGC regulations, when it was criticised, (I) felt the whole controversy was unnecessary, and there is suspicion that due diligence was not put. This is the perception. I am a Bahujan [OBC] myself (sic),” she added.

However, sections of the JNU community strongly objected to her remarks. The JNU Teachers’ Association (JNUTA), in a statement, said the faculty “outrightly condemn her statements and assert that these do not represent the ethos of the University”.

Also read: Reunited Left reclaims JNU students’ union, ABVP loses all key posts

“The JNU VC's comments on the social background to the UGC equity regulations are nothing short of shameful. Her mocking of the victims of social injustice and accusing them of propagating injustice only proves she is unfit to lead a University like JNU or any institution of learning, for that matter,” JNUTA president Surajit Mazumdar told The Federal.

Demand for resignation

The JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) said it was “shocked at the blatantly casteist statements made by VC”.

In a statement, the union said the VC had “proudly proclaimed her RSS lineage” in the podcast, quoting her as saying: “I am proud of my affiliations with Rashtriya Sevika Samiti. RSS gave me a worldview which is universal and unique. RSS taught appreciation of difference and diversity.”

The JNUSU further quoted the VC as saying, “UGC regulations are unnecessary”, “UGC regulation is irrational”, and reiterating her comments on “permanent victimhood”.

Also read: A decade after the 2016 event which saw JNU being branded ‘anti-national’, what's changed on campus

“JNUSU is not only ashamed but condemns the blatantly casteist statements made by a VC of a premier public university. We appeal to all unions, student organisations, and students across campuses and the country to condemn the statements and observe a national protest day on Saturday (February 21), demanding the resignation of the vice chancellor,” the union said.

Equity groups protest

The All India Forum for Equity – UGC Regulation Samta Andolan also issued a statement condemning the VC’s remarks. “The [Forum] unequivocally condemns the casteist venom spewed by a VC who has rusticated all office-bearers of her students' union and demands her immediate resignation,” it said, calling upon citizens to “intensify the fight for Social Equity Regulations along the Rohith Act.”

Abha Dev Habib, Secretary of the Democratic Teachers’ Forum (DTF), said the VC’s remarks reinforced concerns over the structure of the Equity Committee under the UGC Equity Regulations 2026.

Also read: New JNU V-C brings with her a bagful of blemish

“Her statement proves that she cannot be head of any such committee because then she will see any victim as playing the victim card, the Dalit card. This is why we have been saying that heads of institutions cannot be given these positions,” Habib said.

In a post on X, academic Lakshman Yadav said the VC’s remarks were “not merely an objectionable comment – it is an extension of the very mindset that is now visible in the controversies surrounding the UGC”.

“To label centuries of oppression and discrimination as ‘victimhood’ is, in reality, an attempt to undermine the entire constitutional concept of reservation, equal opportunity, and social justice… JNU is identified with ideas and resistance. When the person at the top calls social justice an ‘addiction,’ it is not merely a personal opinion – it is an institutional crisis,” he wrote.

Political backlash

Pandit’s comments also drew political criticism. Rashtriya Janata Dal spokesperson Kanchana Yadav posted on X: “‘Dalits and Blacks are drugged with victimhood.’ And she is the current vice-chancellor of JNU, appointed by the RSS and BJP. And she also said ‘There is permanent victimhood.’”

Communist Party of India (Marxist Leninist) Liberation General Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya also posted on X, saying, “If the Supreme Court is watching, this is evidence enough to infer why we need #UGCEquityRegulations and why this VC must be asked to quit forthwith.”