The inclusion of writings of Hindutva ideologues V D Savarkar and M S Golwalkar along with another Sangh Parivar icon Deen Dayal Upadhyay in the revised syllabus of the MA Governance and Politics course of the Kannur University has sparked off a controversy.
Opposition student organizations KSU and MSF staged protests before the varsity on Thursday demanding removal of the books from the syllabus and terming it as a hidden attempt to “saffronize” education. The books by Hindutva mascots are included in the syllabus of third semester core course ‘Themes in Indian Politics’ of the MA Governance and Politics course. The course, which is offered only in Brennen College, Thalassery, under the varsity, is one of the newly-sanctioned courses in the varsity, which commenced in November last year.
The syllabus was revised last month on the basis of suggestions by an expert committee which replaced the core paper ‘Contemporary Political Theory’ with ‘Themes in Indian Politics’. The new syllabus has extracts from books such as “Hindutva: Who is a Hindu? (V D Savarkar), “We or Our Nationhood Defined” (M S Golwalkar: Chapter- II, III, and IV extracts), “Bunch of Thoughts” (M S Golwalkar) and “Integral Humanism” (Deendayal Upadhyaya).
Kannur University vice chancellor Prof Gopinath Ravindran brushed away allegations of “saffronization”. “I don’t know the basis of the controversy as no one who has read the syllabus fully would have raised the allegation,” he said adding that there are many books in the syllabus which can be considered as against the concept of Hindutva like “Nationalism” by Rabindranath Tagore, “Is Hatred Essential for Nationalism” by Mahatma Gandhi, “Nationalism and Internationalism and what is Culture” by Jawaharlal Nehru and “Who Constitutes a Nation” by B R Amdebkar, in the syllabus. “I think it is wrong to say that books of Golwalkar or Savarkar, which are the foundational text for the current politics, should not be included for reading.
Only by reading their writings can we understand what their views were and the problems in it. I think Golwalkar and Savarkar should be made essential readings in the current times.
People will be frightened if they read what is contained in their books. We have to first have understanding of a thing if we have to support or oppose an idea,” the vice chancellor said.
The vice chancellor pointed out that books like “Is there an Indian way of thinking” by A K Ramanujan”, “Argumentative Indian” by Amartya Sen, “Why I am not an Hindu” by Kancha Ilaiah, “Ramayana and Political Imagination in India” by Sheldon Pollock and “Lokayata” by D P Chattopadhyaya, are also part of the syllabus.
