DU Panel Wants Sexuality, Caste, Religion Dropped From Syllabus

Delhi University's (DU) standing committee on academic affairs has sent back the psychology department's syllabus for revisions, recommending the removal of topics including sexual orientation, caste, religious identity, and an entire elective paper titled "Psychology of Sexuality," two officials familiar with the matter said on Monday.

- Aheli Das

NEW DELHI:

The Department of Psychology held discussions on Monday to deliberate on the recommendations and was instructed to submit a revised syllabus by the evening. The proposed changes are part of DU's overhaul of its undergraduate fourth-year curriculum under the National Education Policy framework.

Among the committee's key suggestions was that the elective paper "Psychology of Peace" be completely rewritten to include Indian epics. "The paper on 'Psychology of Peace' has to be revamped with examples from the Mahabharata on mediation and negotiation," an official said. Another controversial directive advised the department to remove all references to "Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Kashmir" from its curriculum.