New Delhi: Congress on Thursday attacked the Center over a proposal to teach 'Manusmriti' to LLB students of Delhi University, alleging that this is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "salami tactics" to fulfill the bid. of decades of the RSS. "assault" the Constitution.
The Scheduled Castes department of the Congress also called for protests against the proposed move at the state and district levels.
The proposal to teach 'Manusmriti' (Laws of Manu) to DU's LLB students is scheduled to be discussed at a meeting of its Academic Council on Friday.
Reacting to this development, Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said, "This is all part of the salami tactics of the non-biological prime minister to fulfill the RSS's decades-long attempt to attack the Constitution and the Dr. Ambedkar's Legacy".
"In its November 30, 1949 edition, the RSS spokesperson, Organizer, had stated: 'The worst thing about the new Bharat Constitution is that it has nothing of bharatiya in it. The framers of the constitution have incorporated in it elements of the British, American and Canadian, Swiss and other countries' Constitutions, but there are no traces of ancient Bharatiya constitutional laws, institutions, nomenclature and phraseology in them," Ramesh said in a post on X.
"...In our Constitution, there is no mention of the unique constitutional development in ancient Bharat. The Laws of Manu were written long before Lycurgus of Sparta or Solon of Persia. To this day, his laws enunciated in the Manusmriti, they arouse the admiration of the world and provoke spontaneous obedience and conformity, but for our constitutional experts that means nothing," he quoted the Organizer.
Congress SC department president Rajesh Lilothia wrote to the party's state SC department chairpersons and asked them to organize protests against the proposed move.
Calling it a “regressive step” by the Central University, he claimed that this was just the beginning of implementation of similar programs in schools and other state universities in BJP-ruled states.
“This action must meet strong opposition in every state. Therefore, I request you to organize state and district level protests at university and college campuses in your respective states on July 12, 2024,” Lilothia said in the letter.
The Law Faculty has sought approval from the DU's highest decision-making body to revise the syllabus of its first and third year students to teach them 'Manusmriti'.
The changes in the jurisprudence work syllabus pertain to semesters one and six of LLB.
As per the reviews, it is proposed to present to the students two readings on Manusmriti: Manusmriti with the Manubhasya of Medhatithi by G N Jha and Commentary on Manu Smriti - Smritichandrika by T Kristnasawmi Iyer.
The decision to suggest the revisions was unanimously approved at a June 24 meeting of the faculty's Course Committee headed by its dean Anju Vali Tikoo, according to the minutes of the meeting.
Objecting to the move, the Left-backed Social Democratic Teachers' Front (SDTF) wrote to DU vice-chancellor Yogesh Singh, claiming that the manuscript propagates a "regressive" outlook towards women's rights and marginalized communities and that goes against a "progressive educational system."
The Scheduled Castes department of the Congress also called for protests against the proposed move at the state and district levels.
The proposal to teach 'Manusmriti' (Laws of Manu) to DU's LLB students is scheduled to be discussed at a meeting of its Academic Council on Friday.
Reacting to this development, Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said, "This is all part of the salami tactics of the non-biological prime minister to fulfill the RSS's decades-long attempt to attack the Constitution and the Dr. Ambedkar's Legacy".
"In its November 30, 1949 edition, the RSS spokesperson, Organizer, had stated: 'The worst thing about the new Bharat Constitution is that it has nothing of bharatiya in it. The framers of the constitution have incorporated in it elements of the British, American and Canadian, Swiss and other countries' Constitutions, but there are no traces of ancient Bharatiya constitutional laws, institutions, nomenclature and phraseology in them," Ramesh said in a post on X.
"...In our Constitution, there is no mention of the unique constitutional development in ancient Bharat. The Laws of Manu were written long before Lycurgus of Sparta or Solon of Persia. To this day, his laws enunciated in the Manusmriti, they arouse the admiration of the world and provoke spontaneous obedience and conformity, but for our constitutional experts that means nothing," he quoted the Organizer.
Congress SC department president Rajesh Lilothia wrote to the party's state SC department chairpersons and asked them to organize protests against the proposed move.
Calling it a “regressive step” by the Central University, he claimed that this was just the beginning of implementation of similar programs in schools and other state universities in BJP-ruled states.
“This action must meet strong opposition in every state. Therefore, I request you to organize state and district level protests at university and college campuses in your respective states on July 12, 2024,” Lilothia said in the letter.
The Law Faculty has sought approval from the DU's highest decision-making body to revise the syllabus of its first and third year students to teach them 'Manusmriti'.
The changes in the jurisprudence work syllabus pertain to semesters one and six of LLB.
As per the reviews, it is proposed to present to the students two readings on Manusmriti: Manusmriti with the Manubhasya of Medhatithi by G N Jha and Commentary on Manu Smriti - Smritichandrika by T Kristnasawmi Iyer.
The decision to suggest the revisions was unanimously approved at a June 24 meeting of the faculty's Course Committee headed by its dean Anju Vali Tikoo, according to the minutes of the meeting.
Objecting to the move, the Left-backed Social Democratic Teachers' Front (SDTF) wrote to DU vice-chancellor Yogesh Singh, claiming that the manuscript propagates a "regressive" outlook towards women's rights and marginalized communities and that goes against a "progressive educational system."
