The Benaras Hindu University (BHU) has been witness to an uproar brewing over the past two weeks since the appointment of a Muslim Sanskrit professor.?
Protests by RSS-affiliated students' union ABVP have made headlines after the group of students objected that a Muslim cannot teach Sanskrit, a stand opposed by other students.
On Thursday, the university had announced that classes at the department would resume, indicating that the stir against the appointment of assistant professor Feroze Khan had ended.
¡°The Faculty of Sanskrit Vidya Dharma Vigyan, Banaras Hindu University, has reopened,¡± the BHU tweeted Thursday.
Even as the drama over Khan's appointment has not come to a complete end, a total of 709 vacant posts of Sanskrit lecturers exist in the Mahavidyalayas affiliated to Universities, said Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' while replying to questions on the vacancy of Sanskrit lecturers in the Sanskrit Mahavidyalayas.
BHU
The questions were asked by Kanakmal Katara and Ramcharan Bohra in the Lok Sabha today.
"The University Grants Commission (UGC) vide letter dated 4.6.2019 has asked all the Universities to fill up the vacant posts within a period of six months. This was followed by reminder letters dated 31.7.2019, 7.8.2019, 5.9.2019 and 22.10.2019," added Pokhriyal in response to a question about time in which these posts are likely to be filled.
There are a total of 760 Sanskrit colleges in the country, out of which 468 are in Uttar Pradesh. The national capital Delhi has one Sankrit college, with 59 colleges Odisha has the second highest number of Sanskrit colleges in the country.
Replying to the questions on efforts made by the government to improve the quality of education in Sanskrit Mahavidyalas, Pokhriyal said the UGC provides Development Assistance and Block Grants to the eligible colleges for infrastructure development and for improving the quality of education in Sanskrit.?
Meanwhile, in a letter to the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, who is also a visitor to the Banaras Hindu University (BHU), the faculty and former professors of the university have come out in support of students opposing the appointment of Firoze Khan to the Sanskrit Vidya Dharm Vigyaan department (faculty of theology).
Banaras Hindu University | Commons
They have called for the immediate annulment of the appointment of Feroze Khan to the Department and place him in any other Sanskrit teaching department of the University, said a report by ANI.
Pointing out that the appointment of Khan was done by violating the tradition and established norms of the University the letter says, "Sanskrit Vidya Dharm Vigyaan department should not be tinkered with as the appointment of any non-Hindu is against the established norms and tradition of the department."
The professors argued that appointment of a Muslim professor to teach Sanskrit would disrupt the religious and traditional education of students.