This refers to Amartya Sen's letter to members of the Governing Board of Nalanda University, "Academic governance in India remains deeply vulnerable" (Opinion, February 22). Sen, the Nobel laureate, has discovered the phenomenon of government interference in academic matters rather late. He did it only when he realised that his term as the chancellor of Nalanda University was not going to be renewed. He did not discover it earlier when the position was waiting to be renewed.
Knowing him from my student days, I have immense respect for Sen's greatness as a professor, an economist, a charmer of audience and a brilliant speaker. But at the same time, this entitles me to ask some stark questions relevant to the current issue. Is his high moral stand not on shaky ground? When Jyoti Basu's Communist government in West Bengal went on interfering in all the academic matters for decades and ruined the Calcutta University and Presidency College, Sen did not speak up against Basu's brand of Communist government any time. When Santosh Bhattacharya (former-CPI and not CPM) was made vice-chancellor of Calcutta University by the Governor of West Bengal, Basu's Communist government used its students wing to gherao the vice-chancellor day in, day out and destroyed Calcutta University. Where was Sen? Why did he not say a word? Now, he is finding political interference because his term was not renewed. Professors are not above board. They are as much prone to favouritism and nepotism as the other lesser mortals. So there is nothing to go gaga about the "Independence of the Professoriate!"
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Knowing him from my student days, I have immense respect for Sen's greatness as a professor, an economist, a charmer of audience and a brilliant speaker. But at the same time, this entitles me to ask some stark questions relevant to the current issue. Is his high moral stand not on shaky ground? When Jyoti Basu's Communist government in West Bengal went on interfering in all the academic matters for decades and ruined the Calcutta University and Presidency College, Sen did not speak up against Basu's brand of Communist government any time. When Santosh Bhattacharya (former-CPI and not CPM) was made vice-chancellor of Calcutta University by the Governor of West Bengal, Basu's Communist government used its students wing to gherao the vice-chancellor day in, day out and destroyed Calcutta University. Where was Sen? Why did he not say a word? Now, he is finding political interference because his term was not renewed. Professors are not above board. They are as much prone to favouritism and nepotism as the other lesser mortals. So there is nothing to go gaga about the "Independence of the Professoriate!"
Sukumar Mukhopadhyay New Delhi
Letters can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:
The Editor, Business Standard
Nehru House, 4 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg
New Delhi 110 002
Fax: (011) 23720201
E-mail: letters@bsmail.in
All letters must have a postal address and telephone number