Fifty academics deplore Kerala governor&#39;s remarks on Prof Gopinath Ravindran

Fifty academics deplore Kerala governor's remarks on Prof Gopinath Ravindran

Over fifty historians and prominent academics have issued a statement deploring the remarks made by the Governor of Kerala, Arif Mohammad Khan, about the Vice Chancellor of Kannur University, Prof Gopinath Ravindran and expressed their support to him:

***

We are shocked to learn from the media that the Governor of Kerala, Shri Arif Mohammad Khan, has described the Vice Chancellor of Kannur University, the eminent historian, Professor Gopinath Ravindran as a “criminal.”
Professor Gopinath Ravindran is one of India’s leading historians, with a particular specialisation in the agrarian history of Kerala and historical demography. He was Head of the Department of History and Culture at the Jamia Millia Islamia Central University, New Delhi, and has been Member Secretary of the Indian Council of Historical Research. He has also been Director, Nelson Mandela Centre for Peace and Conflict Resolution at the Jamia Millia Islamia.
As Vice Chancellor, Professor Gopinath Ravindran has led the Kannur University with distinction.
The Governor has, on earlier occasions, questioned the re-appointment of Professor Ravindran as Vice Chancellor in press statements. The High Court, however, dismissed a writ petition that sought to remove Professor Ravindran from the post.
The false, defamatory and politically motivated campaign against the Vice Chancellor by the Governor and the Chancellor of the University is unacceptable. The Governor must stop this harassment of a distinguished historian and Vice Chancellor immediately.
---
Click here for signatories

Comments

Will Left victory in Sri Lanka deliver economic sovereignty plan, go beyond 'tired' IMF agenda?

By Atul Chandra, Vijay Prashad* On September 22, 2024, the Sri Lankan election authority announced that Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) alliance won the presidential election. Dissanayake, who has been the leader of the left-wing JVP since 2014, defeated 37 other candidates, including the incumbent president Ranil Wickremesinghe of the United National Party (UNP) and his closest challenger Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Sharp rise in militarization of Bastar as in Kashmir? 54,543 hectares set aside for Army maneuver: FACAM

By Our Representative In the wake of a recent press conference by Home Minister Amit Shah, the civil rights organization Forum Against Corporatization and Militarization (FACAM) has raised alarms over a significant increase in militarization efforts in Chhattisgarh. The state government has tasked the Narayanpur district administration with acquiring and reallocating 54,543 hectares of land within the Abhujmad forests for the establishment of a maneuver range meant for the Indian Army.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah* The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual.

Industries fueling climate crisis draining public funds in Global South: ActionAid

By Our Representative A new ActionAid report has exposed the alarming financial drain on the Global South, as climate-wrecking industries like fossil fuels and industrial agriculture receive over US$600 billion annually in public subsidies. The report, "How the Finance Flows: Corporate Capture of Public Finance Fuelling the Climate Crisis in the Global South", reveals that an average of US$677 billion in public finance is directed toward climate-destructive sectors each year, depriving crucial social sectors such as education.

Will Bangladesh go Egypt way, where military ruler is in power for a decade?

By Vijay Prashad* The day after former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left Dhaka, I was on the phone with a friend who had spent some time on the streets that day. He told me about the atmosphere in Dhaka, how people with little previous political experience had joined in the large protests alongside the students—who seemed to be leading the agitation. I asked him about the political infrastructure of the students and about their political orientation. He said that the protests seemed well-organized and that the students had escalated their demands from an end to certain quotas for government jobs to an end to the government of Sheikh Hasina. Even hours before she left the country, it did not seem that this would be the outcome.

Insider plot to kill Deendayal Upadhyay? What RSS pracharak Balraj Madhok said

By Shamsul Islam* Balraj Madhok's died on May 2, 2016 ending an era of old guards of Hindutva politics. A senior RSS pracharak till his death was paid handsome tributes by the RSS leaders including PM Modi, himself a senior pracharak, for being a "stalwart leader of Jan Sangh. Balraj Madhok ji's ideological commitment was strong and clarity of thought immense. He was selflessly devoted to the nation and society. I had the good fortune of interacting with Balraj Madhok ji on many occasions". The RSS also issued a formal condolence message signed by the Supremo Mohan Bhagwat on behalf of all swayamsevaks, referring to his contribution of commitment to nation and society. He was a leading RSS pracharak on whom his organization relied for initiating prominent Hindutva projects. But today nobody in the RSS-BJP top hierarchy remembers/talks about Madhok as he was an insider chronicler of the immense degeneration which was spreading as an epidemic in the high echelons of th

'Direct support to genocide': IISc's India-Israel business meet to track defence, cybersecurity cooperation

By Our Representative An online petition endorsed by hundreds of scholars, activists and professionals across the world has asked Prof Govindan Rangarajan, director, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, to stop the India Israel Business Summit proposed to be held on 23rd September, "and not allow the use of the IISc as a platform to legitimise genocide and colonialism."

West Bengal rural Dalit children 'deprived of' pre-school education, complementary ICDS food

By Kirity Roy* In a representation to the Principal Secretary, Women and Child Development and Social Welfare Department Government of West Bengal, I have highlighted a critical issue concerning the children of Boaldah village, located in the Bongaon block of North 24 Pargana district. This situation appears to infringe upon Article 21-A of the Constitution of India and Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948, specifically relating to the right to an adequate standard of living.

Search This Blog