New Delhi: The Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) has decided to establish a research chair in the name of Mughal Prince Dara Shikoh, whom the RSS recently hailed as the “epitome of Indianness”.
AMU Vice-Chancellor Tariq Mansoor told ThePrint the university has decided to set up the research chair to further the cause of peace studies in the country. The proposal has already been approved by the institution’s academic council. It is expected to get the finance committee’s consent soon after which, the proposal will be submitted to the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Mansoor said the university will focus on Shikoh’s call for Sanjhi Virasat (common heritage) in India so that a new opening is provided for long-lasting social harmony in the country. He added that AMU will work in tandem with senior RSS functionary Krishna Gopal, whose laudatory speech on Shikoh at a symposium had created a stir, with critics saying the RSS was attempting to create a binary of a ‘good Muslim’ and a ‘bad Muslim’.
Syed Ali Naqvi, the chairman and co-ordinator of AMU’s History department, told ThePrint that the university had been working on the Shikoh chair for three months. He added that it is among the two that the university has proposed to set up.
“Apart from it (Dara Shikoh chair) we have submitted another proposal to set up a chair in the name of AMU founder Sir Syed Ahmed Khan,” Naqvi said. “We will appoint a professor within a month of receiving final consent on these proposals. We were working for about three months for setting up of this chair (on Dara Shikoh).”
Another AMU professor, who did not wish to be named, said the university would promote the integrity of the nation through the chair. “In today’s vitiated atmosphere, people are being divided in the name of religion,” he said. “That is why Dara Shikoh’s ideology — where all religions are treated equally — becomes more relevant. We are furthering the cause of this research for greater integrity of the nation.”
He also accused the BJP and the RSS of using Shikoh to show that they “respect all religions”.
“The Sangh wants to take leverage out of Dara Shikoh’s name and image. It wants to show that it respects all religions. In reality, this is not so,” he said.
This will be the first instance of an educational institution starting an intellectual contemplation focused on Dara Shikoh rather than the other big names of the Mughal dynasty such as Humayun, Akbar or Shikoh’s father Shah Jahan.
Also read: As RSS praises Dara Shikoh, it’s time to give this liberal face of Islam his due
The Sangh’s favourite Mughal
The RSS has recently propped up Shikoh as a liberal, tolerant Mughal ruler and an anti-thesis of his brother Aurangzeb, whom the Sangh views as an ‘Islamic tyrant’.
Speaking at a symposium, ‘Dara Shikoh: A hero of the Indian syncretist traditions‘, in New Delhi on 11 September, the RSS Sah Sarkaryavah (joint general secretary) Krishna Gopal said had Shikoh ruled in place of Aurangzeb, “Islam could have flourished more in India”.
He also urged the Muslim community to follow Dara Shikoh’s legacy and not “complain that there was an atmosphere of fear in the country”.
Gopal also touched upon Shikoh’s fascination with Hindu scriptures and his efforts to get them translated into Persian. “Dara was a prince, who translated the Upanishads into Persian. He discussed and debated it with intellectuals,” Gopal said. “He knew the God was only one and there were different faiths to find him. Dara was never divisive. He understood the assimilative power of society and tried to establish compatibility while remaining a true Muslim.”
Shikoh was the eldest son of Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan and his wife Mumtaz Mahal. He had three brothers, one of whom was Aurangzeb. Shikoh has enjoyed a reputation of being a benevolent and more tolerant leader and has seen a revival ever since the Sangh has regained prominence in Indian polity.
Favoured by Shah Jahan, Shikoh was set to take over after his father’s death but was defeated by Aurangzeb in the battle for succession. He was captured in Afghanistan and publicly beheaded.
Also read: Why AMU’s middle name has never been more in focus than in the last five years