eachers Day has come and gone. Teachers are known to mould generations of the past, present and future! From primary to secondary and university learning, teachers have always been the fulcrum inculcating knowledge, societal norms and values. Universities have always been the focus points of all resistance movements whenever the powers that be, go astray. The recent happenings in Bangladesh is a case in point when the students marched on the streets to show the way. Two recent reasons prompted me to write on this subject, one is India’s ranking on the Academic Freedom Index (AFI) and the second is Yogendra Yadav not granted permission when invited by respected academicians of the Ambedkar University, Delhi .
The recent revelation of the AFI shows that academic freedom has registered a further dip in India. AFI marks each country based on the amount of freedom its universities enjoy. The report in question, is prepared by scholars and officials of the Global Public Policy Institute, the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität (FAU) Erlangen-Nürnberg, the Scholars At Risk Network and the V-Dem Project at the University of Gothenburg. It is prepared after taking serious matters into consideration, like freedom of scholars to be involved in political debates on topics which are considered contentious, despite external pressures; freedom of academic exchange and dissemination; institutional autonomy of universities; campus integrity; and the freedom of academic and cultural expression.
The report notes a downward trend in academic freedom in India that began around 2009, with a marked decrease in university autonomy followed by a sharp downturn across all indicators from 2013. India is placed among the bottom 30% of countries evaluated in the AFI, with an index score of less than 0.38 out of 1. This significant downturn in academic freedom has been attributed to pressure on institutional dimensions such as autonomy and integrity, and the political environment influencing academia.
The V-Dem Institute’s analysis suggests a correlation between this decline and India’s trajectory towards what they label as ‘electoral autocracy’, indicating a complex relationship between political changes and academic freedom.
The Indian academia has produced some brilliant minds like Rajani Kothari, Ashis Nandy, D L Sheth, Partha Chatterjee. Sudipta Kaviraj, Rajeev Bhargava, Bipin Chander, Romila Thapar and our home grown Peter Ronnie de Souza .These minds have written their progressive thought fearlessly and have made their stand clear on issues beyond quotidian partisanship. Unfortunately much of their ideas have not had a deep impression on the world of political practice.
The occasional debates on feminist and Ambedkarite circles, it was believed kept the tradition of political thinking alive, till a few days back when Yogendra Yadav was refused permission as a Speaker. The programme did take place outside the Campus below a banyan tree and is on Youtube. He spoke about the need of reclaiming public spaces to uphold public causes. He also emphasized the universality of universities, in reaching out knowledge to all. Higher Education he believed needs to provide space where the deep inequalities in our country can be mitigated, especially by the public education since this is the first generation who can dream of reaching high positions through the power of education. Yadav spoke about the complete disinvestment of public Higher Education in this country (Goa is an exception to this national malaise).
Unfortunately, the Ambedkar University, is today advised by bureaucratic administrators who decide whether teachers and students can hold discussions on caste, inequality
and discrimination!
Control of universities is not just limited to India, Europe had shown the way much earlier. The same French people who fought for liberty, equality and freedom in the revolution of 1789 accepted Napoleon III’s control over education from 1852-1860.University professors were under the direct control of the Minister of Public instruction, who always acted in the interests of the government. Later in the inter war period, Europe witnessed the rise of Fascism in, Italy, Austria, Hungary, Poland, Rumania, Bulgaria, Greece, Spain and Portugal. The people supported these regimes of Hitler, Mussolini, General Franco and Salazar as these leaders promised the people their lost glory after their disappointment or defeat in World War I. Mussolini controlled all educational institutions by appointing only fascist teachers and professors in schools, colleges and universities and their syllabi was fascist oriented. At the same time, the various youth organs of the party moulded the minds of young as is presently being done by organisations in India across the communal spectrum.
After World War I, the whole atmosphere in Germany was charged with militant nationalism on account of their utter humiliation. Prestige and glory were given priority to liberty and freedom and so the Germans supported Adolf Hitler of the Nazi Party. The Jewish teachers as well as students were excluded from every school and university as a part of the ideal of racial superiority and antisemitic policy of Hitler. The gestapo or the secret police apprehended all political non-conformists. All teachers, professors and churchmen, suspected to be non-Nazis were despatched to concentration camps. The curricula was revised and Students Unions were brought under the complete control of the Nazis.
India has its own history of Academic freedom in education. For some years after Independence in India there were no instances of seminars being monitored, academic books being banned, or the imprisonment of academics for their views. In the case of academic findings, the truth, validity and even plausibility is always determined through scrutiny by peers and experts and can never be by communal ideologies and politicians who cater to their gallery
of supporters in order to
get re-elected.
To swift knowledge from mere opinion requires a sound training in research and an awareness of professional standards of scholarship, citing of sources, conducting a literature survey, norms of peer engagement and disciplined types of methodologies. In recent times there have been numerous cases of ‘book ban’, cancelling of lectures (The cancellation at the last minute of the Kosambi Festival of Ideas in Goa is a case in point) and even the policy to unilaterally stop foreign grants to research institutions. The present wave of anti-intellectualism, where informed opinions are ridiculed, poses a serious threat fuelled by fear of troll armies kindled by the ruling dispensation.
The Goa University academicians rarely take spirited stands on current issues affecting Goa,be it language or environmental degradation issues where their expertise is necessary.
Our country’s foremost intellectual Bhanu Pratap Mehta, resigned as the Vice-Chancellor of Ashoka University in 2019, because he felt there was resistance to academic freedom. He had envisioned his University to be a leading liberal Arts,University. He finally resigned as Professor from the University in 2021. There were protest and student led mass boycotts. Ashoka University lost its shine with his absence!
A growing intolerance in society has increased attacks on academic freedom. The exclusion of several important books from university syllabi, entirely on non-academic grounds, proves this.
The victimisation of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), since January 2019, one of the premier academic institutions of the country, illustrates this. The country’s Finance Minister is an alumni of JNU. The brutal police violence against students in Jamia Millia Islamia and Aligarh Muslim universities, against peaceful protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the National Register of Citizens took place. These events are against widespread attacks on minority communities.
Higher Education as a site of autonomous scholarship, independent thought, and inquiry will loose its credibility if academic freedom is not allowed to flower in creating a just, equitable, and dynamic society. Academic freedom is worth fighting for!
(Sushila Sawant Mendes
is a Professor in
History, author and an
Independent Researcher)