First Woman Vice Chancellor of JNU

February 8, 2022

Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit was recently appointed as the Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). She is the first woman VC of the university. She was appointed by the President of India. Her appointment was recommended by the prime minister and the education ministry.

About Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit

She is a political science professor. She is also an alumna of JNU. She is a doctorate in international relations. Her tenure is for five years. Before becoming the VC of JNU, she was working as a political science professor at the Savitribai Phule University of Maharashtra. She started her career as a professor in Goa in 1988. Then she moved to Pune University in 1993. She has guided 29 doctorates. She has been a member of Indian Council of Social Science Research and University Grants Commission (UGC).

Controversies around Santishree

Snatishree was constantly criticising against the protests at JNU just like M Jagadesh Kumar. Jagadesh Kumar was the predecessor of Santishree. He was recently appointed as the UGC chairman (University Grants Commission).

Reason behind recent new appointments

JNU has always been at the centre of politics. The recent UGC chairman and JNU VC appointments are seen as politicizing factors. The JNU students form their own election committee. The university is the best place for the rise of apolitical faces, especially those from rural background. It ensures free and fair polling. The campus is in the peak during October with organizations like NSUI, ABVP, AISF, SFI, AISA deciding their candidates. The politics in the university is free from money and muscle. Also the students here see the debates as an integral part of politics.

Role of JNU in politics

The university has intense political life within the campus. The issues like minority rights, feminism and social and economic justice are debated fiercely in the campus. The student union of the university follows student drafted constitution. Every issue in the country is debated fiercely in almost all gatherings, both formal and informal. Students leaving the campus have a deep, strong and changed outlook on life due to the student politics.

What is the base issue around JNU?

The JNU has reputation of being Marxists. Right wing activists have recently entered the field. But the students claim that politics in JNU is intellectual and issue based.

Case study

In 2010, AISA opposed Operation Green Hunt. The operation was started to put an end to the naxals in the red corridor. The AISA even celebrated the killing of 76 CRPF personnel in Chhattisgarh. Such actions should not be encouraged, especially among students.

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