Over fifty historians and prominent academics have issued a statement condemning the remarks made by Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan about the Vice Chancellor (V-C) of Kannur University, Prof Gopinath Ravindran and expressed their support to him. “We are shocked to learn from the media that the Governor of Kerala, Shri Arif Mohammad Khan, has described the Vice Chancellor of Kannur University, the eminent historian, Professor Gopinath Ravindran as a ‘criminal’,” the statement said.
The Kerala Governor on Sunday, August 21 launched a scathing attack on the Kannur University Vice-Chancellor by calling the latter a “criminal” and accused Prof Raveendran of being part of the alleged conspiracy to attack the former when he was invited to the varsity amidst the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) agitations in the country.
“Professor Gopinath Ravindran is one of India’s leading historians, with a particular specialisation in the agrarian history of Kerala and historical demography. He was Head of the Department of History and Culture at the Jamia Millia Islamia Central University, New Delhi, and has been Member Secretary of the Indian Council of Historical Research. He has also been Director, Nelson Mandela Centre for Peace and Conflict Resolution at the Jamia Millia Islamia. As Vice Chancellor, Professor Gopinath Ravindran has led the Kannur University with distinction,” the statement said.
The Governor has, on earlier occasions questioned the re-appointment of Professor Ravindran as Vice Chancellor in press statements. The High Court, however, dismissed a writ petition that sought to remove Professor Ravindran from the post, the statement added.
“The false, defamatory and politically motivated campaign against the Vice Chancellor by the Governor and the Chancellor of the University is unacceptable. The Governor must stop this harassment of a distinguished historian and Vice Chancellor immediately,” the statement said. Here is the list of signatories:
1. Prof Prabhu Prasad Mohapatra, Department of History, University of Delhi
2. Prof Romila Thapar, Eminent Historian
3. Prof Kesavan Veluthat, Retired Professor, Department of History, Delhi University
4. Prof Vasanthi Devi, Former Vice Chancellor, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University
5. Syed Ali Nadeem Rezavi, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University
6. Prof Purendra Prasad, Department of Sociology, University of Hyderabad
7. Prof Tanweer Fazal, Department of Political Science, University of Hyderabad
8. Prof Abdul Matin, History Department, Jadavpur University
9. Prof G Arunima, Director, Kerala Council of Historical Research
10. Prof K Nageswar, Department of Journalism, Osmania University, Hyderabad
11. Prof KN Pannikar, Retired Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
12. Prof Prabhat Patnaik, Retired Professor, CESP, JNU
13. Prof Sucheta Mahajan, Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
14. Prof Niladri Bhattacharya, former head of Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
15. Prof RP Bahuguna, former head of History Department, Jamia Millia Islamia
16. Prof Tanuja Kothiyal, Department of History, Ambedkar University
17. Prof Amar Farooqui, Department of History, Delhi University
18. Prof Anirudh Deshpande, Department of History, Delhi University
19. Prof Janaki Abraham, Department of Sociology, Delhi University
20. Prof Sonya Gupta, Department of Spanish & Latin American Sudies, Jamia Millia Islamia
21. Prof Amitab Chakravarty, Dean Arts Faculty, Delhi University
22. Prof Nityanand Tiwari, former head of Hindi Department, Delhi University
23. Prof Joy LK Pachuau, Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
24. Prof Sanghamitra Misra, Department of History, Delhi University
25. Prof Vikas Gupta, Department of History, Delhi University
26. Prof Najma Rehmani, head Urdu Department, Delhi University
27. Prof Hemlata Mahishwar, former head Hindi Department, Jamia Milia Islamia
28. Prof Yasser Arafath, Department of History, Delhi University
29. Prof KL Tuteja, Department of History, Kurukshetra University, Haryana
30. Prof Aditya Mukherjee, Retired Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
31. Prof Mridula Mukherjee, Retired Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
32. Prof CP Chandrasekhar, Retired Professor, CESP, JNU
33. Prof Zoya Hasan, Retired Professor, CPS, JNU
34. Prof Harbans Mukhia, former Head Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
35. Prof Iqtadar Alam Khan, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University
36. Prof Aparna Balachandran, History Department, Delhi University
37. Prof Kali Chittibabu, Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
38. Nandita Narain, Mathematics Department, Delhi University
39. Prof Shobhana Warrier, History Department, Delhi University
40. Prof Shalini Shah, History Department, Delhi University
41. Prof Santosh Rai, History Department, Delhi University
42. Prof Farat Hasan, History Department, Delhi University
43. Prof Rajni Palriwala, former head of Sociology Department, Delhi University
44. Prof Archana Prasad, Centre for Informal Sector & Labour Studies, JNU
45. Prof Rajni Palriwala, former head of Sociology Department, Delhi University
46. Prof Shaswati Mazumdar, former head Germanic & Romance Studies Department, Delhi University
47. Prof Mahalakshmi Ramakrishnan, Centre for Historical Studies, JNU
48. Prof OP Jaiswal, Dibrugarh University
49. Prof Lata Singh, Centre for Women’s Studies, JNU
50. Dr Vishwanath Tripathi, formerly of Hindi Department, Delhi University
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