Since 1974-75, JNU has been awarding bachelor’s degrees to armed forces officers passing out from National Defence Academy (NDA). However, after anti-national, separatist sloganeering in the JNU campus, NDA should snap its ties from JNU. Firstly, officers should get a degree which would help them in their professional career. Secondly, they should feel proud of their association with the degree awarding institution.
Many a times, I have argued against the logic of awarding JNU degree to the cadets. Why University of Pune which is closest to the NDA cannot award such a degree. Most importantly, Pune University has a vibrant Department of Defence Studies. The Defence personnel who are going to spend their 25-30 years in the services should get a degree as per their profession. Earlier Armed forces officers, even after completing a three year rigorous course, were not considered even graduates so the then government in support of communists found the way out by awarding the JNU degree.
Many would be surprised to know that JNU is known for the master’s and doctoral degrees and not the graduate ones, then why to opt for JNU for the bachelor’s degree? Actually, government has ensured additional source of income for the institution. The core question is Degrees are meant to benefit the students or the institution?
This is not only the question of benefit and utility but this alliance itself is contradictory to each other. While NDA teaches the valour and character, JNU glorifies the anti-nationals. JNU atmosphere is juxtaposed to the dedicated nature of soldiers. As there is no coordination, there cannot be any relation between the two.
Disillusioned with these facts, some of the armed forces officers indicated that they would like to return the JNU degrees. They are ashamed of the fact that they are holding the degree of a University where posters, demonstrations and sloganeering take place in support of Afzal and Maqbool Bhatt and the idea of dividing and destroying Bharat is mooted. Many people may not be knowing who was Maqbool Bhatt? He is the same person who first hijacked any Bharateeya plane and initiated terrorist activities in the Kashmir valley.
Such support for traitors in any educational institution is painful for the entire nation, more so for the soldiers. Our brave soldiers died in the most difficult terrain of Siachen where ordinary person cannot even breathe and in the same week, right in the national capital, Afzal and Maqbool Bhatt are lauded as martyrs and destruction of Bharat is discussed. If these elements in JNU have so much of faith in the Constitution then they should have accepted the
decision of the Supreme Court convicting Afzal in the Parliament attack case.
Maroof Raza
