Row over Delhi University cancelling Maharana Pratap birth anniversary event
Row over Delhi University cancelling Maharana Pratap birth anniversary event
The Delhi University’s decision to cancel the scheduled celebration of the birth anniversary of Maharana Pratap, the 15th-century warrior king of the erstwhile Mewar estate, has sparked a political row.
The event was initially granted permission but was subsequently cancelled without citing any specific reason, just a day before its scheduled date on May 7.Â
Organisers, however, claim that it was cancelled under pressure from the government, fearing that a gathering of Rajput personalities would fuel dissent within the community, particularly in parts of the country where there’s opposition against the BJP.
Prominent figures such as Ravindra Singh Bhati, MLA Barmer; Pratap Singh Khachariyawas, former Rajasthan minister and Lok Sabha candidate of the Congress party from Jaipur; Brigadier (Retd) Bhupesh Singh Hada; and Adrija Manjari Singh, daughter of former PM VP Singh, were among the guests for the event. Preparations for the event had been ongoing for the past month.Â
In response to the event’s cancellation, a group of university students staged a sit-in protest in front of the arts faculty for a brief period on Tuesday.
AAP MP Sanjay Singh criticised the BJP and ABVP for cancelling the program, highlighting previous controversial remarks made against the Kshatriya community by Minister Parsottam Rupala.
“What can we expect from a party that sides with people who abuse the women of the Kshatriya community(targeting minister Parsottam Rupala over his controversial remark). The Kshatriya kings of this country had given their over 500 states to make a united India on just one call of Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, but the BJP is not able to leave one seat in honour of the Kshatriya community,” he said attacking the saffron party. “Maharana Pratap belongs to every Indian, not any political party,” he added.
The birth anniversary of Maharana Pratap is celebrated on May 9 in many parts of the country. Groups of DU students had sought permission to hold a seminar to celebrate the anniversary, which was initially granted for May 7. However, confirmation of the event venue was revoked a day prior to the event.Â
The organisers alleged that despite inviting personalities from various fields, including politicians from across party lines, permission for the program was cancelled without a valid reason. They clarified that the event was not religious or caste-based but aimed to commemorate the great Rajput king, with attendees from diverse religious and caste backgrounds.
Rahul Singh, a PhD Scholar at the University of Delhi, said, “The event was to remember the great king and it was not based on religious or caste lines. If the university cancels permission on such grounds to us, it’s not acceptable as they have repeatedly allowed the celebration of International Gujjar Day in the campus. This biased approach of painting one event falsely in casteism and turning a blind eye to another caste-based event is not good.”
Aman Rawat, a university student and one of the organisers of the event said, “We were given permission on April 29 by the university administration, but the permission was abruptly cancelled without citing any reason. It has been told that there was a lot of pressure from ABVP against this event as they wanted it to be done under ABVP’s banner, which the organisers denied.”
The ABVP, when approached for comment, stated that they were not aware of the matter.
Responding to the situation, Delhi University’s Proctor Rajni Abbi stated that the institution does not permit religion-based programs on campus. “This is an educational institute, we cannot allow religion-based programs on the campus. We have also denied permission for Parshuram Jayanti,” Abbi said.Â
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