DU should apologise to Bama, Sukirtharani and Mahesweta Devi: Dalit Intellectual Collective
The Collective says the exlusion of these women writers once again highlights the bigoted attitude in higher education
Image Courtesy:scroll.in
Delhi University must not only reinstate recently deleted texts of writers Bama, Sukirtharani and Mahesweta Devi but also apologise to them, said Dalit Intellectual Collective in an open letter to Vice Chancellor P. C. Joshi. Backed by professors, students, activists and journalists across India, the letter condemned the select removal of three women writers (two Tamil and one Bengali) from the English literature syllabus of the university.
“The exertion of Brahmanical, patriarchal, communal prejudice and domination in higher education once again becomes painfully visible. These authors’ writings accentuate the life-narratives of Adivasis, Dalits, marginalised women and minorities,” said the Collective.
Members expressed shock that the University removed selections from the novel Sangati (Events), two poems “Kaimaru” (Debt) and “En Udal” (My Body), and the short story Draupadi, as per recommendations of the Oversight Committee, despite opposition from at least 16 Academic Council members.
Although literature has historically told stories of state-oppression on Adivasi women, the discrimination faced by Dalit women in caste-infected Indian villages, and manual scavenging, the Oversight Committee claimed that these texts “hurt sentiments” and “(are not) inclusive in nature to depict the true picture of the society”.
The Dalit Intellectual Collective asked, “Whose sentiments were hurt by these texts? Surely not the sentiments of those whose oppression was portrayed here! Must the sentiments of the privileged always shape academic programs?”
Members pointed out that women’s studies and Dalit studies in academia changed the literary scene in India in the past few decades, enriching the Social Science disciplines. The three women writers belong to this group of protest literature.
Rather than excluding these women, the group called for the inclusion of many more such voices from different regions and languages across India.
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DU should apologise to Bama, Sukirtharani and Mahesweta Devi: Dalit Intellectual Collective
The Collective says the exlusion of these women writers once again highlights the bigoted attitude in higher education
Image Courtesy:scroll.in
Delhi University must not only reinstate recently deleted texts of writers Bama, Sukirtharani and Mahesweta Devi but also apologise to them, said Dalit Intellectual Collective in an open letter to Vice Chancellor P. C. Joshi. Backed by professors, students, activists and journalists across India, the letter condemned the select removal of three women writers (two Tamil and one Bengali) from the English literature syllabus of the university.
“The exertion of Brahmanical, patriarchal, communal prejudice and domination in higher education once again becomes painfully visible. These authors’ writings accentuate the life-narratives of Adivasis, Dalits, marginalised women and minorities,” said the Collective.
Members expressed shock that the University removed selections from the novel Sangati (Events), two poems “Kaimaru” (Debt) and “En Udal” (My Body), and the short story Draupadi, as per recommendations of the Oversight Committee, despite opposition from at least 16 Academic Council members.
Although literature has historically told stories of state-oppression on Adivasi women, the discrimination faced by Dalit women in caste-infected Indian villages, and manual scavenging, the Oversight Committee claimed that these texts “hurt sentiments” and “(are not) inclusive in nature to depict the true picture of the society”.
The Dalit Intellectual Collective asked, “Whose sentiments were hurt by these texts? Surely not the sentiments of those whose oppression was portrayed here! Must the sentiments of the privileged always shape academic programs?”
Members pointed out that women’s studies and Dalit studies in academia changed the literary scene in India in the past few decades, enriching the Social Science disciplines. The three women writers belong to this group of protest literature.
Rather than excluding these women, the group called for the inclusion of many more such voices from different regions and languages across India.
Related:
Censorship in learning tarnishes India’s international image: DTF member Dhusiya
From ripples to waves: Experts discuss the power of Dalit literature
51 Reasons to say goodbye to NEP 2020: AIFRTE
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