ABVP protests over inclusion of chapter on Jinnah in Jammu University's political science syllabus

Jammu: The ABVP on Friday staged protests at the University of Jammu, demanding the withdrawal of a chapter on former Pakistan president Muhammad Ali Jinnah included in the revised postgraduate political science syllabus under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

The university, however, maintained that the chapter on Jinnah is part of academic curricula in several universities across India and aligns with the University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines.

Led by ABVP Jammu and Kashmir secretary Sannak Shrivats, activists assembled on the university campus and raised slogans against the administration, seeking immediate removal of the chapter from the “Modern Indian political thought” module under the paper “Minorities and the Nation”.

The protesters also tore posters of Jinnah and warned of intensifying the agitation if the content is not withdrawn.

“Our government should note that the Department of Political Science at Jammu University has released its syllabus for 2026–2028. In it, under ‘Modern Indian Political Thought,’ certain individuals are being presented as representatives of minorities, including Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and Muhammad Ali Jinnah. These are the same individuals who played a role in the partition of the country and propounded the Two-Nation Theory. Teaching about them poses a concern,” an ABVP leader told reporters.

Shrivats said that academic freedom should not disregard national sentiments and termed the decision “unacceptable” to students.

“If the university administration fails to revoke this inclusion immediately, ABVP will be compelled to launch a strong democratic agitation across Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

He added that if minorities are to be represented in the curriculum, figures who “genuinely worked for minorities” should be included, not those associated with the country’s division.

Head of the Political Science Department Baljit Singh Mann defended the syllabus, saying the inclusion of Jinnah and other thinkers is purely academic and consistent with the curricula followed by universities nationwide as well as the UGC norms.

He said excluding such topics would disadvantage students appearing for the National Eligibility Test (NET).

“In the module, we teach different thinkers of the modern Indian period, including Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and Muhammad Iqbal. We also cover Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, M S Golwalkar, Mahatma Gandhi, B R Ambedkar, Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Patel,” Mann said.

He emphasised that the university does not promote any ideology but presents diverse viewpoints to enable critical evaluation.

“Our objective is to present different perspectives so that students can assess the merits and demerits and distinguish between right and wrong. This is an academic exercise, not advocacy,” he said.

Mann said that several figures, including Jinnah, Iqbal and Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, held nationalist views in their earlier years and understanding the evolution of their ideas is important for historical clarity.

He said the syllabus had been approved by a committee and was not the decision of any individual.

“These thinkers are part of UGC-recommended syllabi and are taught in universities across the country. If we exclude them, our students will be at a disadvantage in competitive examinations,” he added, citing examples of universities in Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Kolkata where similar content is taught.