Chennai: The teachers of the reputed Indian Institute of Technology – Madras (IIT-M) today jumped into the simmering debate over the turn of events at the JNU campus, saying that calling for the nation's dismemberment in the name of dissent was not acceptable.
In a letter written to President Pranab Mukherjee, the faculty of IIT-M expressed their concern at the what they termed as a ‘war' situation in institutions of higher learning.
In the letter, written by the 56 faculty members said that the higher learning institutes have been converted in to “war zones” and there is an urgent need to protect educational institution from the scholarship of abuse and hate.
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“We feel concerned about the situation in the country where institutions of higher learning are being converted into war zones by some academicians, politicians and sections of media. We support intellectual freedom, and alternative views are a must for democracy and creativity. However, there is a deep distortion of the meaning of academic freedom which is leading to a vitiated atmosphere in the campuses,” they said.
They have requested the President to take steps for saving educational institutions from the “scholarship of abuse, hate and discord” and restoring the atmosphere of sobriety, reflection and harmony necessary for genuine scholarship, Shreepad Karmalkar, a professor and one of the signatories, said in a statement.
“In the name of academic autonomy, angry academics should not wage their ideological wars, nor can an institute campus be beyond the norms of the society outside in matters of abusive and hateful expressions. Calling for dismemberment and ruin of our country in the name of dissent is not acceptable, even in a university,” the letter said.
(With inputs from PTI)
