More academics have spoken out in support of economists Sabyasachi Das and Pulapre Balakrishnan who have quit Ashoka University over alleged breach of academic freedom.

Over 300 academics, in a statement issued on Sunday, said: “By backsliding on Dr Das’s academic freedom because the topic he chose to study was inconvenient to one political party, the university violates several principles of academic freedom. This episode also shows that private universities do not, despite all their claims to the contrary, serve as bulwarks of liberal thought. The fact of the matter is that the government is applying equal pressure on both private and public universities/institutions. Ashoka, by caving in to the pressure is falling short of its own declared vision.”

They added: “We hope that the Ashoka University imbroglio shall form the basis of a wide-ranging discussion, encompassing both private and public institutions, about the necessity of a charter that protects academic freedom in India.”

Among those who have endorsed the statement are Delhi University’s Abha Dev Habib and Satish Deshpande, retired professor Anita Rampal, Jawaharlal Nehru University professors Ajith Kanna, Sucheta Mahajan, Sucharita Sen, Y.S. Alone and Nivedita Menon, retired JNU professor Harbans Mukhia, Ambedkar University, Delhi’s Dipa Sinha, Jadavpur University professor Abhijit Roy, professor at South Africa’s University of Witwatersrand Dilip Menon and author Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.

The university campus in Haryana has been on the boil since last week. Das, an assistant professor of economics, quit after the varsity distanced itself from his working paper alleging electoral manipulation by the “incumbent party” in the 2019 general election, and its governing body (G.B.) initiated an inquiry into the paper. Another economics professor, Balakrishnan, quit soon after, saying “academic freedom was violated in the response” of the varsity to Das’s paper.

In a welcome email to freshers on Sunday, vice-chancellor Somak Raychaudhury said talks were on to resolve the issue.

“The faculty, academic leadership and Governing Body of Ashoka have been engaged in extensive discussions over the course of this week in order to resolve the issues which have arisen. The conversations have been constructive, and geared towards finding long-term solutions that would reinforce the University’s fundamental commitment to academic freedom and excellence.”

Last week, the economics department gave the G.B. until August 23 to
accept two demands: offer Das the job he quit, and that the G.B. stop evaluating faculty research. Else, teachers cannot “carry forward their teaching obligations”. Other departments joined this call to strike or offered solidarity. They also drew support from several teachers’ groups in other universities.

However, the economics department withdrew this ultimatum on August 19 after undisclosed assurances from the G.B.