---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Jatin Desai <[email protected]> Date: 10 October 2010 12:04
PRESS RELEASE *Statement of opposition against the Vice-Chancellor’s decision to drop Such A Long Journey from the SYBA English Syllabus of Mumbai University* We, the undersigned, condemn the undemocratic manner in which Rohinton Mistry’s novel *Such A Long Journey* has been omitted from the Second Year Bachelor of Arts (SYBA) English Literature syllabus of the University of Mumbai. We are disturbed and alarmed by the manner in which the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Dr. Rajan Welukar, bowed down to the demands of the Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena (the student wing of the Shiv Sena) and had the novel dropped from the syllabus overnight, purely on account of the group’s displeasure with “anti Shiv Sena passages”; “derogatory references” to Mumbai’s *dabbawalas* , the *Marathi Manoos* and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru; and “extremely obscene and vulgar language in its’ text”. While we do not deny that the BVS and its supporters have every right to be outraged by the contents of the novel, we strongly oppose the means which they have chosen to express their dissent, which includes burning copies of the book and the issuing of ultimatums not only for the VC to omit the text from the syllabus within 24 hours, but also to exclude the professors who included to text in the syllabus from any university work in the future. Furthermore, being keenly aware of the immense bureaucracy involved in the decision-making processes of the University, we question the nature of the administrative process which led to the book being dropped from the syllabus and demand that the details of the said proceedings be made public. Lastly, in the interest of upholding the democratic principles enshrined within the Indian Constitution, we demand that the novel be reinstated in the syllabus and urge the BVS and its’ supporters to initiate healthy and democratic debate regarding whether it deserves a place in the syllabus or not. Signed, 1. Asad Bin Saif BUILD 2. Avinash Kadam Revolutionary Cultural Movement 3. Dr. Arif Syed Citizens' Initiative for Peace 4. Jatin Desai Peoples' Media Initiative 5. Kamayani Human Rights activist 6. Madhav Menon Citizens' Initiative for Peace 7. Meena Menon Focus on the Global South 8. Salil Rameshchandra Citizens' Initiative for Peace 9. Sukla Sen Ekta (Committee for Communal Amity) <http://uk.mc285.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?fid=Sent&mid=1_6318257_ALdu%2BFcAANO8TLFcnQJhIVYsKno&cmd=msg.reply&ymcjs=1&order=down&.rand=1896387780><http://uk.mc285.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?fid=Sent&mid=1_6318257_ALdu%2BFcAANO8TLFcnQJhIVYsKno&cmd=msg.replyall&ymcjs=1&order=down&.rand=1896387780><http://uk.mc285.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?fid=Sent&mid=1_6318257_ALdu%2BFcAANO8TLFcnQJhIVYsKno&cmd=msg.fwd&fA=1&ymcjs=1&order=down&.rand=1896387780><http://uk.mc285.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?fid=Sent&mid=1_6318257_ALdu%2BFcAANO8TLFcnQJhIVYsKno&cmd=msg.fwd&ymcjs=1&order=down&.rand=1896387780> -- Peace Is Doable -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth?hl=en-GB.
