'The arrest of editors, publishers has posed threat to academic freedom'

A press statement by teachers of Punjabi University, Patiala

September 26

Press Statement

The recent arrests of two publishers and two book editors by Punjab police for reproducing works of Punjabi poet Babu Rajab Ali raises a serious threat to the question of academic freedom.  We condemn this thoughtless and irresponsible act of Punjab police and Punjab government.

The Punjab police booked them under the Prevention of Atrocities Against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act because the works of Babu Rajab Ali contained some then used caste names.

However, we believe that Amit Mittar of Tarak Bharti Parkashan, Barnala and Ashok Garg of Sangam Publication, Samana are working to dissiminate the knowledge in Punjabi language.  Similarly, editors of the book Jagjeet Singh Sahoke and Sukhwinder Singh Swatantar reproduced the works which were written in the mid of 20^th century.

We understand that it is an intellectual bankruptcy of the state government and the Punjab police that the four were booked under the Prevention of Atrocities Against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act. Despite the fact that both the editors were himself, dalits and the publishers are known for publishing pro dalit literature.

It is not a case of ignorance but a case of sheer abuse of the law and of the act, which enacted to ensure the dignity of the dalits. It is a common fact that everyday there are so many incidents of atrocities against dalits but the same government and the same police doesn’t sound so enthusiastic to stop that. Instead of encroaching academic freedom and abusing the law, the Punjab police should pay some heed to stop atrocities against dalits.

We understand that various texts especially classical Punjabi poetry including Waris Shah’s Heer and poetry of Bhai Gurdas and Dhani Ram Chatrik many more contains caste names as it is in Babu Raja Ali’s poetry. So we believe that Indian constitution is a modern document and the texts written much before the existence of the Constitution can’t be looked with the prism of Indian Constitution. If government imagines doing so, it will set a wrong precedent, which will be dangerous for the history, historiography and culture of Punjab.  It will be disastrous for academic freedom.

If once the tampering with the history and historical texts start, there will be no end. You will have to demolish the Ajanta and Elora for ‘obscenity’; you will have to change the Waris Shah’ Heer, which is considered the biggest literary work in Punjab literature so far.

So we immediately demand from the Punjab government that FIR should be quashed and the guilty police officers should be booked for the abuse of law.

Issued on behalf of Democratic Teachers Front (DTF), Punjabi University, Patiala by Professor Jaswinder Singh Brar, Professor Lakhwinder Singh, Professor Kesar Singh Bhangoo, Professor Inderjit Singh, Professor Sukhwinder Singh, Dr. Umrao Singh