Study Gita, not Gaza: DU panel chair wants conflict unit axed

The chair of Delhi University's (DU) Standing Committee for Academic Affairs has recommended the removal of a chapter on conflict resolution in the psychology syllabus that includes discussions on the Israel-Palestine conflict, Kashmir, and India's North-East, suggesting instead that students study the Mahabharata and the Bhagavad Gita to better understand the "psychology of peace," according to at least two officials present at a committee meeting on Friday.

- Aheli Das

NEW DELHI:

Chair professor Shri Prakash Singh reportedly objected to several other units in the psychology syllabus as well, including those on "minority stress theory," "psychology of diversity," and "dating apps," stressing that the course included "too much Western thought."

The committee had convened on Friday to review draft syllabi for the seventh and eighth semesters of various undergraduate courses, marking a critical stage in finalising coursework for the university's first four-year undergraduate batch, scheduled to begin in August. The syllabi for psychology and biochemistry, committee members said, were sent back for revision.

To be sure, the standing committee can only make recommendations. The final approval rests with the academic council, which is set to meet on May 10.

Monami Sinha, an associate professor at Kamala Nehru College and a member of both the standing committee and academic council, said the psychology syllabus had "come under intense scrutiny," with the chair questioning the inclusion of Western perspectives.