NEW DELHI: A scheduled seminar at the Delhi School of Economics (DSE), University of Delhi, was cancelled following directions from the university administration. The seminar, part of the Department of Sociology’s long-running Friday Colloquium series, was titled “Land, Property and Democratic Rights” and was to discuss judicial interpretations of the Right to Property.
According to faculty members, the department received instructions from the Vice-Chancellor and Registrar to cancel the event and report compliance immediately. No formal reason for the cancellation was provided.
Taking to social media, the convener- Professor Nandini Sundar from DSE said, “Since I can no longer guarantee the intellectual integrity of the research colloquium and that it will not be cancelled arbitrarily at the last minute, I have resigned as convenor of the colloquium,” read the post.
She also alleged, “No reasons for the cancellation were given, in writing or otherwise, so we can only speculate that the RSS led Government is scared of any discussion around land and democratic rights.”
The post further read, “The Friday Colloquium is among the oldest academic forums at the Department of Sociology, with a history spanning several decades. It has traditionally served as a platform for scholarly discussion and has been integral to the department’s teaching and research culture. Graduate students are required to attend the sessions as part of their course work.”