After incessant protests, Banaras Hindu University (BHU) professor Firoze Khan has stepped down from his postion at Sanskrit Vidya Dharm Vigyan department and joined Arts Faculty now. As per sources, he will teach only Sanskrit now.
Students from the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), were protesting against Firoze Khan’s appointment since a month for his appointment as Dharma Vigyaan teacher. The protests were not happening because of his appointment as Sanskrit language professor but for his appointment, to teach Hindu practices and rituals in the Banaras Hindu University.
Earlier, a BHU student said, “We are not against the Muslims. But, the trend to appoint a non-Hindu and a non-believer to teach Hindu faith and rituals is absurd.”
They would not have opposed Dr Khan’s appointment as professor of Sanskrit language in any other streams at the BHU. The main cause of protest was appointment of a non-Hindu in a stream, which is all about Hindu rituals and religion directly related to practical priesthood and Sanatan faith.
The name of the course for which Dr. Khan was appointed, Sanskrit Vidya Dharma Vigyaan, has two parts to it – Sanskrit Vidya (Language) and Dharma Vigyaan (Theology) and hence the point that the BHU students were trying to make was, a non-Hindu cannot teach Hindu theology.