Pune college denies caste bias claim after ex-student alleges job loss over verification delay

Pune: A college in Pune has rubbished a former Dalit student's allegations of caste bias and his claim that it had withheld his job verification, clarifying that it had sent the document to the UK-based employer and he had not lost his job.

Prem Birhade, a former BBA student of Modern College of Arts, Science and Commerce, had claimed in a social media post that the college failed to send the reference verification to his London-based employer, where he was recently recruited.

The incident invited criticism from NCP (SP) leader Rohit Pawar, who accused the college of showing "Manuwadi" ideology and harassing the former student.

Birhade, in a video clip, alleged caste discrimination and claimed that when he asked the college authorities to send the necessary verification, they questioned him about his caste.

"I got a job in a firm in London. During the process, the firm sought reference verification from my college. However, the college did not provide the reference verification, and I lost my job. I lost my job opportunity because I belong to the Scheduled Caste category, and I am Buddhist," he had said.

He further claimed that when he contacted the head of the department, she asked him about his caste.

"Later, she told me that, as per the principal's instructions, she would not be able to recommend me. I told her that the college doesn't have to provide a recommendation to the firm. It just has to tell the firm that I studied at the college between 2020 and 2023," he alleged.

Birhade also claimed that the HOD told him he was insincere and irregular during his time at the college.

Shyamkant Deshmukh, the college's vice principal, however, refuted Birhade's allegations of caste discrimination, calling them baseless.

"After completing graduation in commerce, when Prem was going overseas for further education, the college had given him a letter of recommendation. Now, claims are being made that he lost his job, but in reality, he has not lost his job. He was in the process of joining, and the third-party firm sent an email to the college seeking verification on September 30. In that mail, the firm had not given any deadline to furnish the reference verification," he said.

He said that on October 14, the college provided the bona fide certificate and the information sought in the proforma to the firm.

Asked about the delay in response, Deshmukh said the job profile was related to aviation, and since receiving such a mail was new to the educational institute, it took time to respond, as accurate data needed to be furnished.

He clarified that the caste discrimination allegations were unfounded, asserting that more than 50,000 students from all sections of society study at the institution.

NCP (SP) MLA Pawar, in a post on X on Sunday, said, "If the Modern College in Pune fails to verify the documents on time, resulting in a young student losing a job in London, this is not right. Is the Modern College administration attempting to harass the young man, Prem Birhade, with the same mentality that led to the attempt to throw a shoe at the Chief Justice of India?" He claimed that while the college staff was cooperative, the new principal, who was appointed to the post by bypassing all rules, laws, and seniority, has "Manuwadi" ideology.

"It does not behove the principal to play such Manuwadi games in a college, which has a good reputation and a grand legacy," he wrote.

The college should provide the necessary cooperation to the student, express regret and ensure that such mistakes don't recur in the future, he said in the post, adding that the college should stop indulging in "Manuwadi" politics.