A portrait of Hindutva leader Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was installed in the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union office by the union joint secretary Vaibhav Meena of ABVP on May 28th, on the occasion of the RSS ideologue’s birth anniversary, without following due procedure.
This action has sparked conflict in the union due to the joint secretary’s failure to adhere to the formal procedure for installing a new portrait in the Union office, and due to the ideological implications of Savarkar’s image.
The president of JNUSU, Nitish Kumar, and general secretary, Fathima Munteha, released a joint statement on Thursday opposing the act. “It has come to our notice that portraits are being installed in the JNUSU Office without prior consultation in the Council meeting. A portrait in the JNUSU Office can’t be installed without a resolution being passed in the council meeting, which has long been a convention,” they said.
“It is only after the election of a representative from ABVP to the students’ union that this recognition has become possible. We will continue this tradition,” joint secretary Meena said about the installation of the portrait.
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, one of the earliest proponents of Hindu nationalist ideology, has had a notorious legacy. While he was imprisoned in the Cellular Jail for criticising the British early in his career as a politician, he had virtually stopped all criticism of the British upon release and instead focused all his energy on the establishment of a Hindu Rashtra through his party, the Hindu Mahasabha, meanwhile lending support to the British.
The current JNUSU panel has four members, three of whom are part of the United Left alliance, and one from ABVP.
This story was originally published in maktoobmedia.com. Read the full story here.
