New Delhi : A central university got approval from the Bar Council of India to start a Bachelor of Law (LLB) programme with selected portions of Manusmriti text, which is an ancient legal text as per Hindu religious scriptures.
As per a report in The Telegraph, the Central Sanskrit University (CSU) has decided to include teachings of Manusmriti in the law syllabus.
CSU vice-chancellor (VC) professor Shrinivasa Varakhedi said that students, academics, researchers and society should interpret the ancient scriptures while keeping in view the social milieu of that time.
“Manusmriti merely described the societal practice. It did not prescribe any rules to be followed. In the course on jurisprudence, students will critically analyse the evolution of societal practices and reforms,” he said.
“By providing a text for study in the curricula we are not forcing any student to accept it. This could be a good strategy to avoid the mistakes happening in society. Historical texts should be part of our education to either learn or relearn from the past,” he added.
It may be mentioned that the Faculty of Law of Delhi University had recently sought approval from the esteemed educational institution to revise its law syllabus so that Manusmriti can also be taught to the students.
However, Delhi University Vice Chancellor later said that the proposal have been rejected and the students will not be taught anything from this ancient legal text of Hinduism.
The decision of including Manusmriti in the law syllabus of Delhi University created massive protests among various organizations.
In a letter to Singh, Social Democratic Teachers Front (SDTF) general secretary S S Barwal and chairperson S K Sagar said recommending Manusmriti to the students as a suggested reading “is highly objectionable as this text is adverse to the progress and education of women and marginalised communities in India”.