Academic Freedom is Eroding in India, Here’s How to Stop It
Vinay Kambipura | 15 October 2024 | The News Minute
What happened to Deepak Malghan at Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Bangalore is an example of how brazenly shameless institutions have become in sending a clear message that the era of academic freedom is now over. The messaging is quite clear from IITs, IIMs, and other elite institutions: academic excellence is excellence in getting top ranks, keeping out of controversies, and submitting reports on time.
What happens at these institutions matters a lot as any restriction on academic freedom at such places will have a chilling effect on other central and state universities and more importantly on autonomous or affiliated colleges all over the country. The battle for academic freedom at elite institutions is fought by an equally elite group of faculty and researchers who have high academic standing or at least are heavily networked in the national and international academia. Though the stakes are high, in terms of suspensions, dismissals, and even incarceration, the faculty at such institutions have built a decent support through their network with activist groups, and civil society…