Srinagar, Nov 11, KDC: Students of the Kashmir University’s main and satellite campuses have accused the varsity authorities of making them sit in a “mysterious examination” on Sufism earlier this week, promoting them to seek a high-level probe into the matter.
Students at KU’s main, north and south campuses, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that they were suddenly told to “remain ready” for an “unspecified examination” which was held on Wednesday, November 6.
“The next day, we were given a questionnaire of some 86 questions. It was some Sufism-related examination, which was held in our auditorium,” said a group of students from north campus, Baramulla, wishing anonymity. “Several questions in the questionnaire were not only weird, but also carried more than four answers which made us sense that something is fishy about it. We went to the director and asked him about it, but he asked us to forget about it as it was some extracurricular activity conducted by the Department of Students Welfare, Main Campus.”
Interestingly, later in the day, the North Campus administration issued a formal press release with the heading “KU’s North Campus conducts Sufish-quotient test… Hundreds of students participate.” The said press-release mentioned that the “Dean of Social Welfare (sic) of KU organised an hour long objective type examination on Sufism at North Campus in Sir Syed Ahmad Khan Auditorium in an effort to bridge the gap between tradition and modernity.”
“Prof Shamim Ahmad Shah, Dean Social Welfare (Sic) is organising such events in different departs (sic) and Campuses of the University. Around 350 students of different departments of the Campus participated in the examination,” the press-release said. It may be noted that there is no such position as Dean Social Welfare in KU.
The questionnaire, accessed by this news agency, has 86 questions, with many questions having more than four objective type answers (contrary to four answer options usually seen in objective type question papers.” Some questions asked were: ‘In your opinion, is the younger generation in Kashmir disconnected from Sufi traditions?’; ‘In your view, what factors are responsible for the perceived decline in Kashmiriyat in recent decades?’; ‘Do you believe that promoting Sufi teachings can help in preserving the spirit of Kashmiriyat in today’s society?’; ‘Have you ever met a Sufi?’; ‘In your opinion, can Sufi version of Islam help in neutralizing terrorism?’; ‘Which Ideology do you think is prevalent among your peers?’; ‘Do you visit any peer for Taveez (amulets)?’; ‘What is your opinion about benediction (tabaruk) provided at shrines?’; ‘How often do you see memes related to Sufism on social media?’; ‘Which is your primary source of information on religious ideologies?’.
The question “which ideology do you think is prevalent among your peers” also has an option of banned “Jamaat-e-Islami” besides “Salafism”, “Dobandi” and “Barelvi”. And the question “which ideology do you think has the most influence on youth in Kashmir” also has the same options.
The students said the examination was a “very unusual activity” which requires a thorough investigation. “We feel that this was some kind of an activity where the questionnaire wanted to draw inferences about the students’ religious mindset. What if some student did not know the answers to particular questions, would he be bracketed under the ‘radical’ category?” the students said, urging the authorities to come clean on the said examination.
The students also questioned the mandate of the Department of Students Welfare, saying “it is meant for the welfare of students and not to conduct any examinations. We know to know whether holding of this particular examination/survey was approved by the Vice-Chancellor and what were its objectives”.
The students according to news agency Kashmir Dot Com said such examinations and surveys “have the potential to unnecessarily raise apprehensions about their religious beliefs and practices and jeopardise their careers”.
Sources in the University said except for VC and DSW, “not many know about this particular event”. “They are the best people to answer this query,” said one official, wishing not to be named. “I don’t think KU is directly involved in this event. There must be some external organisation, but it would be better if you ask the VC or DSW”, the official said. (KDC)
