Universities should not become sectarian in the name of allowing platforms to all: Baragur

Shivamogga

Writer and intellectual Prof. Baragur Ramachandrappa has said that no university should become sectarian under the pretext of giving platform to all kinds of thoughts.

Mr. Ramachandrappa made these remarks, taking part in the Kannada Rajyotsava celebrations organised by Kuvempu University at Shankaarghatta on Wednesday, in the light of a controversy over a seminar on “Bhagavad Gita and Prevention of Crime” held on the university campus.

“We should remain open-minded while understanding different ideas. However, when we propagate them, we should have a clear stand,” he stated. “We should listen to all. However, people tend to believe lies. Lies sound pleasant to ears, but truth is harsh. We are in the age that demands proof for the truth, but not for lies.”

Srikanta Kudige, retired professor of Kannada, said that the seminar on Bhagavad Gita should not have been conducted on the university campus. “There are designated places for such debates. University is not the right place,” he said, adding that it would open a Pandora’s box where other faiths might also demand space for debate on similar lines. “There are far more important issues that need to be addressed as priority,” he told Kuvempu University Vice-Chancellor Prof. Sharath Ananthamurthy, who chaired the programme.

A seminar on “Bhagavad Gita and Prevention of Crime” was held on the university campus on Tuesday, in association with Swarnarashmi Trust of Shivamogga and Bhagavad Gita Abhiyana Samiti. The activists of Dalit Sangharsha Samiti had staged a protest opposing the seminar.