KiiT University Faculty Quits Over ‘Anti-War’ Stand

Bhubaneswar: An assistant professor of KiiT University here was allegedly told to resign after she appeared on an Odia TV channel discussion on the Pulwama attack, according to a report published by The Wire.

Madhumita Ray, who taught in the private university’s School of Rural Management, drew flak for saying that India should not go to war with Pakistan in the aftermath of the terror attack, in which 40 CRPF jawans were martyred. She was on the panel with retired Indian Army Colonel Purna Chandra Patnaik.

Ray told The Wire she opposed the views favouring a war with Pakistan and went on to argue that war is bad for the economy and for the poor, as resources will be diverted from schemes for it. This will only help arms dealers in the US and Europe and highly decorated army officers like the colonel and political parties, who need the rhetoric, and not the soldiers, she said.

She also accused the army of exacerbating the situation not just in Kashmir but also in the Northeast.

Since India is not under military but democratic rule, there should be a democratic dialogue on Kashmir headed by politicians and not the army, she had suggested on the show.

The colonel, according to Ray, called her an “anti-national” for her views about Kashmir and the army.

This episode is no longer available on the news channel website.

The editor of the channel reportedly said that they received a lot of “negative feedback” and are yet to decide on whether to publish the show.