Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday (July 12) quashed the controversy over the proposal to teach the ancient Indian text Manusmriti to the law students of Delhi University.
Speaking to the media in Hyderabad, the Union Education Minister emphasized on the government's stance to quash the proposal, which had previously sought to include two readings on Manusmriti: the Manubhasya of Medhatithi by G.N. Jha and Commentary of Manu Smriti - Smritichandrika by T. Krishnaswami Iyer, as part of the jurisprudence paper for semesters one and six of LLB students.
He said, "Yesterday, some information came to us that Manusmriti will be part of the Law Faculty course (in DU). I enquired and talked to the Delhi University Vice Chancellor. He assured me that some law faculty members have proposed some changes in the jurisprudence chapter."
"There is no endorsement of any such proposal in the Academic Council. Yesterday, the Vice Chancellor himself rejected that proposal. We all are committed to our Constitution and to a futuristic approach. The government is committed to upholding the true spirit and letter of the Constitution. There is no question of including any controversial portion of any script," he added.
Meanwhile, it is pertinent to note that ahead of the statement released by the Union Education Minister, the Delhi University Vice Chancellor Yogesh Singh had himself rejected the proposal to include Manusmriti in the LLB curriculum.
Earlier, in a statement released, the Vice Chancellor rejected the proposal, citing that the committee did not find it appropriate and rejected it.
“Law faculty thought of adding a portion of Manusmriti in a course called ‘jurisprudence.’ When this proposal was put forward in front of a committee headed by the Vice Chancellor, we did not find it appropriate and rejected it. There are many other texts to teach Indian knowledge traditions, and we should not rely on any one text,” Delhi University’s Vice Chancellor, Yogesh Singh, said.
READ MORE | Delhi University rejects proposal to include 'Manusmriti' in LLB syllabus amid uproar
