Chandigarh: From bitter
feuds between its vice chancellor and the Shiromani Gurdwara
Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) to its website being hacked, the Sri
Guru Granth Sahib World University, the first and only Sikh
university, has been grappling with controversies almost from day
one.
The university, set up with the idea of "disseminating philosophy
and ideology of the Sikh religion and the Sikh holy book", is back
in the news with the Punjab and Haryana High Court dismissing a
petition by founder vice chancellor Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia
challenging his suspension. The court Tuesday asked SGPC to
explore other options, including allowing Ahluwalia to resign, to
give him an opportunity to exit.
Ahluwalia, who was removed as vice chancellor of the Punjabi
University in Patiala in 2002 following charges of corruption and
moral turpitude against him, was placed under suspension by his
employer SGPC in July last year.
From Ahluwalia's appointment as founder vice chancellor onwards,
the university in Fatehgarh Sahib, 50 km from here, has been
caught in numerous wrangles in the 18 months since it was formally
launched in July 2011. To add to its problems, its website was
hacked too.
Ahluwalia was shot at and critically wounded by a man inside the
university campus Aug 1, 2011, just a week after the university
was formally launched. The attack, according to the police, was
carried out as the attacker was upset with Ahluwalia over an
admission case.
Ahluwalia, in his petition before the high court, had accused SGPC
president Avtar Singh Makkar, who is the chancellor of the
university, of blackmailing him over certain appointments. Of 92
appointments made, Ahluwalia alleged, 32 were of people
recommended by Makkar. This included Makkar's grandson who, he
alleged, was acting like a "super V-C".
The appointments were made when Ahluwalia was in hospital and
Gurnek Singh, an eminent Sikh historian, was made acting vice
chancellor by Makkar.
Radical Sikh organisations had objected to the SGPC -- an elected
religious body of Sikhs for control and management of gurdwaras in
Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh -- appointing
Ahluwalia as vice chancellor saying that he had a controversial
past. Ahluwalia was considered close to Punjab Chief Minister
Parkash Singh Badal.
Besides his sacking from the Punjabi University, a molestation
case was also filed against Ahluwalia by a research student from
the university. Though he was acquitted by a court, the taint
remained.
"Due to his tainted past, he was removed as Punjabi University
V-C. He was not fit for this post due to his controversial past.
The university got mired in controversy ever since he was
appointed," radical Sikh group Dal Khalsa leader Kanwarpal Singh
told IANS.
The first academic session of the university was launched by the
chief minister in Fatehgarh Sahib. With an initial fund of Rs.500
crore, the university campus is coming up in 84 acres of land.
Badal said the new university would be a "unique institution of
higher learning across the globe to disseminate the philosophy and
ideology of great holy scripture to bring awareness amongst the
mankind about the universal message of love, peace, oneness and
communal harmony".
The university is supposed to undertake research on different
aspects of the Guru Granth Sahib and also carry out a comparative
study of other religions for better understanding. It offers
regular, professional and vocational courses also.
Fortunately, academic work has continued unaffected despite the
controversies with classes for various regular, professional and
vocational courses being conducted.
(Jaideep Sarin
can be contacted at jaideep.s@ians.in)
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