Dyal Singh (Evening) College to sport Sikh warrior’s name? Why DU proposal has hit a wall

Delhi University is considering renaming Dyal Singh (Evening) College after Sikh warrior Banda Singh Bahadur, a move that has triggered sharp opposition from the college’s staff association, The Indian Express has learnt.

Faculty members The Indian Express spoke to said they learnt of the proposed renaming after it was publicly announced by Vice-Chancellor Yogesh Singh last month.

Speaking about the historical legacy of Banda Singh Bahadur, V-C Singh had said in his speech on the occasion of Vir Bal Diwas on December 26: “… Today, as Banda Singh Bahadur is being spoken about, although the decision is to be finalised… we wish to name Dyal Singh Evening College after Banda Singh Bahadur.”

Both the Dyal Singh (Morning) and Evening colleges run from the same building, even after the evening college became a day college in 2017. At the time, previous attempts at renaming the college also faced opposition.

Currently, the faculty’s objections were formalised in a unanimous resolution adopted by the college staff association at an emergent meeting on January 8. According to the resolution, “the Administration, through the Principal’s Office, initiated the process of changing the college name, as announced by the [V-C]… This action was taken without prior consultation with the staff council or other stakeholders [teaching staff, non-teaching staff, and students].”

“According to the agreement between the Dyal Singh College Trust and University of Delhi, a name change is not permitted. Any such change may result in serious consequences, including bifurcation, establishment of a separate governing body, and possible relocation of the college,” it added.

The Indian Express reached out to Principal Bhawna Pandey and V-C Singh over calls and messages but received no response.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Registrar Vikas Gupta said, “The matter shall be placed before the Executive Council…” Stating that both Dyal Singh Morning and Evening colleges will function from the same building, Gupta added, “… It [name change] was done earlier with regard to Deshbandhu and Ram Lal Anand colleges… They were both Morning and Evening.”

“We shouldn’t have two colleges with the same name running as Day Colleges,” he said.

At the centre of the dispute is Clause 12 of the transfer deed dated June 22, 1978, through which Dyal Singh College was taken over by DU. The clause reads: “It has been decided by the university that the college, after its takeover… will continue to be known as Dyal Singh College.”

In a letter sent to the V-C, members of the Executive Council, DU Teachers’ Association, college staff association underlined that any violation of this clause could lead to withdrawal of land rights “thereby compelling the college to relocate from its present premises”. It added that stakeholders “strongly oppose any such move.”

“We have learnt from our fellow faculty members who were part of the [college’s] Governing Body that on December 5, a proposal for change of names was discussed… We also learnt two names were proposed, Banda Singh Bahadur and Majithia college (After Dyal Singh’s last name)…,” said a faculty member.

-In 2013, Ram Lal Anand Evening College was renamed Aryabhatta College after clearance from DU’s Executive Council. -In 2010, Deshbandhu Evening College was renamed Ramanujan College.

According to its official website, Dyal Singh (Evening) College traces its origins to Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia, a 19th-century philanthropist and nationalist who “lent support to all, irrespective of caste and creed,” while keeping his charities private. He served as Chairman of the Board of Punjab National Bank, India’s first indigenous bank, and founded The Tribune newspaper.

The college began functioning in 1959, became part of DU in 1978, and turned co-educational in 1994-95.

In 2017, when Dyal Singh (Evening) College was first cleared to become a full-fledged morning college, the Governing Body the same year had resolved it would be renamed ‘Vande Mataram Mahavidyalaya’.

That proposal did not go down well.

Manjinder Singh Sirsa, who was the Rajouri Garden MLA at the time and was part of the Shiromani Akali Dal, filed a police complaint and argued that the land on which the college stands belongs to the Dyal Singh Majithia Trust and cannot be used by an institution bearing a different name.

The proposal was eventually dropped.

The staff association has now cited that precedent. It demanded that the proposal sent by the Governing Body on December 5 be withdrawn, an emergency meeting of the Staff Council be convened, and the administration place all legal documents  including land and transfer agreements, in the public domain.