Academic Jihad? Row Haunting IIT Gandhinagar Humanities Department Over Emphasis on Islamic Theology

The Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar (IITGN), which is itself proud of its engineering excellence tradition, is now squarely amid a raging tempest. The IITGN Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) Department has found itself at the center of a storm of accusations of offering Islamic theology courses, leading to allegations of ideological bias and suppression of dissenting voices.

Thesis Ideas on Islamic Belief and Practice in the Limelight

Sensationalization was triggered when the social media users borrowed some PhD thesis proposals by the HSS Department on Islamic practice and belief. The critics have alleged that the subjects border on research since they are pointing towards adopting Islamic theology. The theses discovered were:

"Robes of Authority: Sunni Ulama, Sartorial Tradition, and Embodied Piety in Malabar”

Supervisors: Madhumita Sengupta & Rosa Maria Perez

This research examines how Malabar, Kerala Sunni Islamic thinkers construct religious legitimacy on attire and behavior, linking fashion taste with religious and moral signification.

"Fishing With Faith: Islam, Indigenous Knowledge, and Ecological Sustainability in Lakshadweep"

Supervisor: Rosa Maria Perez

This research examines how the Islamic faith is infused with Lakshadweep's traditional ecological wisdom and how religious values inform ecologically sustainable fishing.

“From Gods to Jinn: Ontological Rewriting and the Islamization of Spirits in Kerala”

Supervisor: Sharada Visweswara

This thesis is a description of the reinterpretation of previous pre-Islamic religious beliefs of Kerala under Islamic influence, namely that of conventional spirits as Islamized jinns.

“Beyond Cultural Brokers: Speech Mediation and Ritual Efficacy in Mosque Speeches in Kozhikode”

Supervisor: Nishant Choksi

This research explores the way speech in Kozhikode mosques functions outside of communication as an end in itself, and the imam's place within the structuration of ritual experience and religious meaning.

Allegations of Suppression and Intimidation

Under the rising tensions, Associate Professor Nishaant Choksi, advisor to one of the said theses, purportedly mailed an email warning students against relaying internal departmental mail. The email purportedly contained:

“It has come to our notice that an individual has been forwarding internal HSS mails on thesis title MASC by students and their supervisors to others who are spreading them around out of context on social media in a deprecatory, insulting, and unsafe manner.”

Choksi alleged that this is violative of the honor code of the institute and warned against holding perpetrators accountable for action. 

Allegations of Double Standards and Bias

There have also been some other accusations based on purported WhatsApp chats between IITGN students. Chats reveal that Hindu students were threatened and discouraged from debating and speaking out against the Pahalgam terror attack when Hindus had been targeted by Islamic extremists. According to reports, a student reportedly quoted:

“Our language aesthetics instructor vo Nishant Choksi, is warning us that we will fail if we even discuss the Islamic AI research paper with anyone outside of class. They already informed us that if we do discuss it, they will fail Hindus in his paper.”

Another student complained of a seeming inconsistency in institute policy as it pertains to worldly objects:

“Aur Palestine ki wajahon ke liye 2023 aur 2024 mein candle march aur reading session hota tha. Entrance exam mein har year Palestine par passage hota hai. Lekin Kashmir par Instagram stories ka lagana bhi mana kar diya.”

These claims point to an overarching concern for muzzling some voices within academic circles.

Calls for Investigation and Accountability

The brewing scandal has instigated a storm of indignation, with demands for an in-depth investigation into the intellectual climate of the HSS Department and the so-called gagging of dissenting voices. The stakeholders are demanding that the IITGN administration and the concerned government departments investigate these issues at the earliest to protect the canons of intellectual freedom and objectivity.

Conclusion

The IIT Gandhinagar controversy is what reveals the wafer-thin line between ideological neutrality and intellectual curiosity. While premier institutions like IITGN tread on controversy-ridden terrain in issues about culture and religion, such a free speech-friendly environment open to plural perspectives is what matters most.