Abstract:
The Association of Indian Universities (AIU) Thursday
wrote to vice chancellors across the country urging them to sever
academic ties with institutions in Pakistan, Turkiye, and
Bangladesh, citing national security concerns. Institutions like
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Jamia Millia Islamia and
Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University (CSJMU), have already
suspended or terminated their academic collaborations with
Turkish higher education institutions, while Delhi University is
reviewing its MoUs.
In a strongly worded letter, “Appeal for National Solidarity in
Response to Pakistan and Its Allies’ State-Sponsored Terrorism
Against India”, to all the 1,100 universities, AIU president professor
Vinay Kumar Pathak condemned what he described as “state-sponsored terrorism” and criticised countries such
as Turkiye and Bangladesh for supporting anti-India narratives. “These efforts aim to destabilise our democratic
fabric and national unity,” the letter reads, calling on Indian universities to “review and, if needed, suspend or end”
partnerships with institutions in the three nations.
JNU has suspended an MoU with Turkiye’s Inonu University “due to national security considerations as JNU
stands with the nation and the armed forces, many of whom are JNU Alumni,” said Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit,
VC of the university. Jamia has suspended all forms of collaborations with Turkish educational and other
establishments. UP govt-run CSJMU has terminated its MoUwith Istanbul University.
