'Don't Have Space for Likes of Him': Road in JNU Gets Named After VD Savarkar, Students Union Calls it Shameful

New Delhi: A road in the JNU campus has been named after VD Savarkar, the Hindu nationalist leader known for promulgating the philosophy of Hindutva.

The practice of naming roads started some time back during the Jawaharlal Nehru University's Executive Council meetings.

The decision to name a road 'VD Savarkar Marg' was taken in November 13 last year. The same meeting — that took place out of campus — had also decided to hike the hostel fees for students.

The other names recorded and proposed in the meeting were of Guru Ravidas Marg; Rani Abbaka Marg; Abdul Hamid Marg; Maharishi Valmiki Marg; Rani Jhansi Marg; Veer Shivaji Marg; Maharana Pratap Marg and Sardar Patel Marg.

Other names suggested were — Lokmanya Tilak Marg; Dayanand Saraswati Marg; Gopinath Bordoloi Marg; Gargi Vachaknavi Marg and Dara Shikoh Marg.

JNUSU's student union leader Aishe Ghosh tweeted the picture of the Marg board. “It’s a shame to the legacy of JNU that this man’s name has been put in this university. Never did the university had space for Savarkar and his stooges and never will it have(sic),” she tweeted.

The board is erected adjacent to a signboard showing way to the Subansir hostel in the campus.

General Secretary Satish Chandra Yadav said this was an attempt to tame the character of JNU.“The people who joined with colonial powers at the time of freedom movement are being given this treatment in JNU. We won’t accept it,” he said.

JNU Registrar Pramod Kumar did not respond to calls.

Last year in August, ahead of the Delhi University student union polls, DUSU President Shakti Singh had installed statues of Veer Savarkar, Subhash Chandra Bose and Bhagat Singh outside the gate of the varsity's Arts Faculty in north campus. She had done this without obtaining any permissions.