{{Short description|Indian activist for Dalit rights and against caste based discrimination and right to live}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Use Indian English|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox person | name = Radhika Vemula | image = | birth_place = Andhra Pradesh, India | occupation = Activist | children = Rohith, Raja, and Nileema }}
'''Radhika Vemula''' is an Indian activist for Dalit rights and against caste based discrimination.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://scroll.in/article/802658/born-dalit-meet-radhika-vemula-rohiths-mother|title=Born Dalit: Meet Radhika Vemula, Rohith's mother|last=Minhaz|first=Ayesha|website=Scroll.in|date=31 January 2016 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-12-09}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.in/sujatha-surepally/a-year-after-rohiths-death-radhika-vemula-continues-to-be-hara_a_21660470/|title=A Year After Rohith's Death, Radhika Vemula Continues To Be Harassed And Humiliated|date=2017-01-23|website=HuffPost India|language=en|access-date=2019-12-09}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theweek.in/theweek/current/2018/07/21/a-mothers-metamorphosis.html|title=A mother's metamorphosis|website=The Week|language=en|access-date=2019-12-10|archive-date=10 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191210230047/https://www.theweek.in/theweek/current/2018/07/21/a-mothers-metamorphosis.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://auburnseminary.org/voices/radhika-vemula/|title=Standing In Solidarity with Radhika Vemula on International Women's Day|date=2017-03-06|website=Auburn Seminary|language=en-US|access-date=2019-12-17|archive-date=17 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191217211820/https://auburnseminary.org/voices/radhika-vemula/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
She continues the work started by her son, Rohith Vemula (leader of Ambedkar Students' Association), who committed suicide in the University of Hyderabad in 2016 - an incident which sparked outrage across India and gained widespread media attention as a case of Dalit discrimination in Indian universities. During the protest at the University of Hyderabad, police had arrested Radhika Vemula and other students on the first death anniversary of her son. She is seeking to end caste discrimination in universities and other higher education institutions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://scroll.in/latest/937921/sc-agrees-to-hear-plea-of-payal-tadvi-and-rohith-vemulas-mothers-asks-centre-to-respond-in-4-weeks|title=SC agrees to hear plea of Payal Tadvi and Rohith Vemula's mothers, asks Centre to respond in 4 weeks|author=Scroll Staff|website=Scroll.in|date=20 September 2019 |language=en-US|access-date=2020-01-02}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/rohith-vemula-s-mother-students-arrested-as-protest-rocks-hyderabad-varsity/story-GcU38sGVp1ftvVWNIgLMDL.html|title=Rohith Vemula's mother, students arrested as protest rocks Hyderabad varsity|date=17 January 2017|newspaper=Hindustan Times|agency=Indo Asian News Service|accessdate=21 July 2024}}</ref> However, the District Level Scrutiny Committee in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh, which was reviewing the Dalit status of Rohith Vemula, submitted its final report to the government stating that neither Rohith nor his mother Radhika were Dalits.<ref name="auto">{{Cite news|url=https://www.firstpost.com/india/rohith-vemula-and-mother-radhika-are-obcs-not-dalits-says-andhra-pradesh-government-3282654.html|title=Rohith Vemula and mother Radhika are OBCs, not Dalits, says Andhra Pradesh government|date=14 February 2017|work=Firstpost|access-date=7 June 2017|language=en-US}}</ref>
== Family == Radhika Vemula mothered three children, her older son Rohith(30/01/1989 to 17/01/2016), a younger son Raja, and her daughter Nileema.<ref name=":0" />
== Conversion to Buddhism == On 14 April 2016, on the 125th Ambedkar Jayanti, Radhika Vemula, and her son Raja converted to Buddhism in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Prakash Ambedkar, grandson of Babasaheb Ambedkar, initiated the conversion of Rohith's family to Buddhism at Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Bhavan in Dadar, Mumbai.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://m.navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/metro/mumbai/other-news/Rohith-Vemulas-mother-and-brother-converted-to-Buddhism/articleshow/51822970.cms|title=रोहित वेमुला के परिवार ने अपनाया बौद्ध धर्म}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/hindi/india/2016/04/160414_rohit_vemula_family_converted_buddhism_rd|title = रोहित के परिवार ने हिंदू धर्म छोड़ा, बने बौद्ध|date = 14 April 2016}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vemula, Radhika}} Category:Living people Category:Indian women's rights activists Category:Navayana Buddhists Category:21st-century Indian Buddhists Category:Converts to Buddhism from Hinduism Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Dalit women Category:Dalit activists Category:Dalit rights activists Category:Activists from Andhra Pradesh
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