After DU course on Savarkar, JNU mulls chapters on Shivaji
New Delhi, July 15
Close on the heels of Delhi University approving the introduction of a course on Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the Jawaharlal Nehru University, another Central University, is mulling chapters on Chhatrapati Shivaji and Marathi history and culture.
A detailed discussion in this respect was held between JNU Vice Chancellor Santishree Pandit and a delegation of Maharashtra officials led by state Cultural Affairs Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar at Maharashtra Sadan in the capital on Friday.
Speaking after the meeting, Mungantiwar said, “A detailed discussion has taken place with JNU V-C Santishree Pandit on what courses can be started on the subject of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Marathi culture in JNU. Soon joint action will be taken on this issue by the state government and the JNU.”
The push for courses on Shivaji, founder of the Maratha empire, comes on the eve of 2024 Lok Sabha elections, with the ruling BJP in Maharashtra keen to expand its electoral base.
In the 2019 LS elections, the BJP had won 22 seats out of the state’s 48 Lok Sabha segments.
Maharashtra has the second highest LS seats in India after UP’s 80 and is key to BJP’s return to power in 2024.
