Delhi University rejects proposal to add Manusmriti to undergraduate law syllabus
There was ‘no question of including any controversial portion of any script’, said Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
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Delhi University has rejected the proposal to include the Manusmriti in its Bachelor of Laws syllabus, Vice Chancellor Yogesh Singh said on Thursday, reported ANI.
The Manusmriti is a Hindu legal text authored by a medieval ascetic named Manu. It has been widely criticised for its gender and caste-based provisions.
Earlier on Thursday, media reports said that the Faculty of Law had proposed to introduce the literary works Manusmriti with the Manubhasya of Medhatithi by GN Jha and Commentary of Manu Smriti – Smritichandrika by T Kristnasawmi Iyer as suggested readings for undergraduate law students.
The proposal had triggered an uproar, with the Social Democratic Teachers Front, a collective of university teachers, writing to Singh. They told the vice chancellor that the introduction of any section or part of the Manusmriti is against the basic structure and principles of the Constitution.
Singh later said that a committee headed by him did not find the proposal “appropriate” and rejected it, reported PTI. “There are many other texts to teach [the] Indian knowledge tradition and we should not rely on any one text,” the vice chancellor told the news agency.
On Friday, Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan also confirmed that the proposal had been rejected.
“We all are committed to our Constitution, to futuristic approach,” said Pradhan, reported ANI. “Government is committed to upholding...
