Rashmi Samant Quits As President-elect Of Oxford Student Union Over Racist Remarks

Rashmi Samant quits: Rashmi Samant has resigned from the post of Oxford University student union due to old social media posts which are facing backlash for being "racist" and " insensitive".

Samant had made history when she became the first Indian women ever to be elected as President of Oxford Student Union. Just days after that, her old social media posts have emerged in which she is seen expressing problematic opinions.

Rashmi Samant is likely to undertake a legal plan against Oxford university faculty members. Reports say she weighing her options. The faculty member allegedly put up a photo of her mother alongside a ‘Jai Shri Ram’ poster.

Rashmi and Controversy

She visited Malaysia in the past and the caption under her picture from that time has "Ching chang" written, this offended Chinese students of the university. She had also made a controversial post on her visit to Holocaust Memorial in Berlin, 2017. Oxford University's LGBTQ+ campaign demanded her resignation when one of her posts emerged in which she is seen differentiating women and trans women.

Her Open Letter

Samant in an open letter published in student newspaper named Cherwell said, “Though the recent developments might make it hard for you to believe the sincerity of my apologies, it deeply pained me to note that I have lost the trust that the student community reposed in me with their votes and belief in my manifesto owing to my mistakes.

“Regrettably, I alienated people within our wonderful student community to the extent that they deem me unfit to be the leader they rightfully deserve,” she added. Samant said that she sincerely apologises to every student who has been hurt by her actions or words and that she is seeking a chance to gain their trust back. However, this didn't stop students from asking for her resignation. Samant then decided to step down. "It has been an honour to be your president-elect," she wrote.

The Oxford Student Union released its statement in which they apologised for "the hurt and discomfort caused by the actions of the President-elect." They added, "Oxford SU has a no-tolerance policy towards discrimination. Racism, transphobia, and antisemitism have no place in our organisation.”

Here’s what we know of Rashmi Samant:

• Rashmi Samant belongs to Udupi, Karnataka and she went to Manipal University to pursue an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering.
• At Oxford University, she goes to the Linacre College where she is doing a masters in science course in energy systems.
• She won a landslide victory in Oxford University Student Union elections and got elected as the President.
• In an old post emerged online, Samat had shared a picture of her in Malaysia and had captioned it “Ching Chang”. This offended the Chinese students of the university. Her resignation was also demanded by the campus’ LGBTQ+ community over her objectionable remarks on trans women.