Apoorvanand

Apoorvanand Jha
Personal details
Born	Siwan, Bihar
Nationality	Indian
Residence	Delhi
Alma mater	Patna University
Profession	Professor

Apoorvanand Jha is professor at the Hindi Department, Faculty of Arts, University of Delhi. He has worked on Marxism in Hindi. He is also a regular columnist and political commentator.

Early life and education

Apoorvanand was born in Muzaffarpur, Bihar, grew up in Siwan and received his undergraduate education from Bihar University. He earned his Masters and Ph.D. from Patna University. He currently teaches Hindi at University of Delhi.

Academic career

Prof. Apoorvanand started his teaching career at T.P.S. College, Patna, a constituent unit of Magadh University. In 1999, he was invited to join Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya, a Central University set up by the Government of India, and was instrumental in developing the University's vision plan and first academic programs. In 2004, he joined the Hindi Department at the University of Delhi where he was instrumental in redesigning the department's academic program.

Published works

He had authored or edited the following books:

• Sundar Ka Swapna (New Delhi: Vani Prakashan, 2001)
• Sahitya Ka Ekant (New Delhi: Vani Prakashan, 2008)
• The Idea of a University (Chennai: Context, 2018)
• Education at the Crossroads (New Delhi: Niyogi Books, 2018)

Political commentator

His critical essays have appeared in all major Hindi journals. Apart from his academic and literary writings, he also contributes columns in Indian Newspapers and magazines on the issues of education, culture, communalism, violence and human rights both in Hindi and also in English. He is a regular columnist at The Indian Express and The Wire. He also frequently writes on other platforms such as Scroll, Satya Hindi, Al Jazeera, The Kochi Post. He at times also appears on Indian television as a panelist on issues concerning Higher Education, language and communal-ism.

Views

NCERT history textbook revision

In his literary and cultural criticism articles featured on Al Jazeera, he expressed his disapproval of the alterations made in NCERT textbooks. He argued that the history of Islamic rule in India was being marginalized, despite its significant presence in school textbooks since Indian independence. Specifically, he highlighted the revised syllabus in CBSE schools, stating that the "legacy" of Islamic rulers in India was being erased from history textbooks. Apoorvanand claims that this revision, under the guise of "reducing the learning load on students", was actually a form of "cultural genocide". He emphasized that this revision was leading to the exclusion of important historical events, such as the 2002 Gujarat riots, the assassination of Gandhi by Nathuram Godse, instances of untouchability, and the caste system. He believed that this omission would hinder children's understanding of national history by concealing crucial truths and presenting India as a nation devoid of discrimination and violence.

2020 Delhi riots

On 12 September 2020, he along with Sitaram Yechuri, Yogendra Yadav and others was named in the supplementary chargesheet by Delhi Police for his alleged role in 2020 Delhi riots.

Further reading

• "Eminent persons request President to consider Yakub Memon's mercy plea". The Hindu. 26 July 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
• "Hashimpura Massacre : Why did they make us wait for 28 years? - Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". Dnaindia.com. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
• "MOOC providers versus sceptics at 'Going Global' - University World News". Universityworldnews.com. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
• N, Vijetha S. (7 March 2014). "A need to break the 'dead end'". The Hindu. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
• "Call to Preserve Secular Character of Education : Islamic Voice". Islamicvoice.com. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
• Baildon, Mark; Loh, Kah Seng; Lim, Ivy Maria; İnanç, Gül; Jaffar, Junaidah (22 August 2013). Controversial History Education in Asian Contexts. Routledge. ISBN 9781135014216 – via Google Books.
• "Apoorvanand Jha profile on WAYN.COM". Wayn.com. Archived from the original on 28 September 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
• Handbook of Universities. Atlantic Publishers & Dist. 28 September 2017. ISBN 9788126906086 – via Google Books.
• "Education and Secularism Prof Apoorvanand Jha Hindi". World News.
• "La question religieuse au centre des élections régionales indiennes". Le Monde. 11 October 2015.
• "50 OPEN MINDS: PUBLIC SQUARE - OPEN Magazine". OPEN Magazine. 7 May 2015.
• "Statement of concern regarding PM's takeover of the Teacher's Day". Altgaze.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
• "Riot, manufactured in Gorakhpur". Tehelka. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2007.
• "POLICY REVIEW TV". test.policyreview.tv.