Chapter 1: University of British Columbia (UBC)

Chapter 1

University of British Columbia (UBC)

Jakobsh’s work is a typical example of Ph.D. research produced by a Western university with an “endowed Sikh Chair.” Her work throws light on the motives behind Sikh studies programs. To begin with, let us examine some background information on UBC and her thesis supervisor. Generally a graduate student investigates the reputation of the university, the department of study and the supervisor before committing to begin studies. It seems Jakobsh relinquished this early homework because at the time, UBC was already knee-deep in a controversy with the Canadian Sikhs about the objectives of the “endowed Sikh Chair,” as disclosed in the following advertisement:¹

The Department of Asian studies anticipates making a one-year visiting appointment in Punjabi language and literature and Sikh Studies for the academic year 1987-1988. We invite your application or nomination of others who may be qualified to teach courses in beginning and intermediate Punjabi language and at least one other field such as Sikh literature, religion or history. Ph. D. degree required, as well as a very good command of spoken and written Punjabi.

Candidate should send a complete C. V., samples of research papers and publications, and the names and addresses of three referees to Professor Daniel L. Overmyer, Head, Department of Asian Studies, Asian Centre, 1871 West Mall, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B. C., Canada V6T 1W5. Candidates should request their referees to send confidential letters of recommendation directly to the same address. The deadline for completion of applications is May 15, 1987.

The department expects to make a tenure-track appointment to an endowed position in Punjabi and Sikh studies beginning in July 1988, following the University’s normal procedures. The person appointed to the one-year visiting position may be a candidate for the tenure-track appointment the following year.

Sincerely,

Daniel L. Overmyer,

Professor and Head.

However, without regard to the above advertisement, UBC hired Harjot Oberoi. Amazingly, this fellow had neither expertise nor fluency in the Punjabi language. He grew up in Delhi and consequently had very little appreciation of the Punjabi culture. Moreover, his paper “Popular Saints, Goddesses and Village Sacred Sites: Rereading Sikh Experience in the Nineteenth Century” that he read at the University of California, Berkeley, in February 1987, revealed that he had no knowledge of Aad Guru Granth Sahib (Sikh Scripture). And his knowledge of Sikh history was somewhat parochial--learning from the writings of Hindus, Christians and Marxists/Communists. Sikhs (scholars as well as laity) criticized Oberoi’s paper for gross distortions of Sikh religion and history.^{2, 3} Sikhs were alarmed and rightly questioned Harjot Oberoi’s qualifications and suitability for holding the Sikh Chair. To investigate his credentials further, they requested a copy of his Ph.D. thesis from Australian National University, but the librarian denied the request on February 9, 1990:

With reference to your letter dated 7th Nov. 89, concerning the following A. N. U. Ph.D. Thesis.

Oberoi, H. S.

A world reconstructed: religion, ritual and community among the Sikhs, 1850-1901.

A.N.U. Ph. D. Thesis 1987.

I regret the author has denied us permission to make copies. Your order is, therefore, cancelled.

The published version should be released soon and wishes potential readers to consult it, when available.

Please find enclosed your open cheque.

Yours sincerely,

Lending Services Librarian,

User Services Division,

R. G. Memzies Building.⁴

Pursuing this matter further, on July 22, 1994, a delegation of India-based Sikh scholars: Professors Balkar Singh, Darshan Singh, Kehar Singh, and Gurnam Kaur held a meeting with Professors Harjot Oberoi and Kenneth Bryant of UBC and Professor Hugh Johnston of Simon Fraser University, to discuss the objectives of the Sikh Chair. It was the unanimous opinion of the Sikh scholars that the incumbent Dr. Harjot Obroi was not contributing to the fulfillment of the objectives spelled out in the agreement concerning the Sikh Chair.⁵

Elaborating on the sordid affair of UBC Sikh Chair, Jasbir Singh Mann writes:

It is very interesting to note that the Sikhs paid the money and signed the contract with the UBC in 1985 but the chair was not started until 1987. Sardar Mohinder Singh Gosal, the president of Federation of Sikh Societies of Canada and signatory to the contract, made a statement on July 22, 1994 “that there is evidence to prove that the two-year delay to start this chair was intentional under the pressure of anti-Sikh political forces.” It seems very clear from this statement that UBC became a part of the plan to defuse the Sikh identity from the inception of this chair. It is possible that UBC waited for two years to hire an applicant who was being groomed for anti-Sikh propaganda. As is evident from the objectives of the Sikh Chair, the applicant must be qualified for Punjabi language, Literature and Sikhism (doctrine, religious practice, and philosophy). Dr. Oberoi has admitted himself that he is only a student of Sikh history, has nothing to do with religion and his qualifications for Punjabi language and literature remain questionable. Many other applicants with appropriate qualifications were rejected. How the selection process was held to fulfill the special objective, as outlined in the contract, is a serious matter and needs thorough investigation.⁶

The following memo by Fritz Lehman lends credence to Gosal’s assertion that UBC was consulting the Indian Government regarding the objectives of the Sikh Chair:

To: U. B. C. South Asianists

From: Fritz Lehmann, History (x5748)

Re: Highlights of Shashtri Indo-Canadian Institute Annual Meeting

India’s acting High Commissioner, Mr. K. P. Fabian wishes to visit U. B. C. in the very near future to meet South Asia Specialists and administrators. He would likely address us on an aspect of Indian foreign policy (he prefers North-South dialogue) and wishes to discuss the proposed chair in Sikh studies, about which his government is concerned. He seemed to me to be a reasonable and sympathetic person.⁷

Since it was the Sikh community of Canada that raised funds for the “Sikh Chair,”⁸ one may ask why the Indian government was concerned about it? And why was UBC consulting the Indian government about the objectives of the “Sikh Chair” and who should hold this chair? The answer to these questions lies in what happened in India shortly after the British imperialist relinquished their rule over the Indian subcontinent in 1947 and divided it into two nations: one Hindu, India and the other Muslim, Pakistan. The world community is well aware of the genocide of Jews and Gypsies by the Nazis, but not many people except Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists, know the “constitutional genocide” of the three communities by the framers of the Indian constitution.

In 1949, Jawaharlal Nehru, handpicked successor of the “apostle of peace,” Mahatma Gandhi, led the Indian Parliament to declare Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists as Hindus under Article 25 of the Indian Constitution in spite of the vehement opposition of two Sikh representatives, Hukam Singh and Bhupinder Singh Mann who refused to sign the document. To date, the Sikh community has not signed to ratify the Indian Constitution. Shortly thereafter, Hindu Code Bill was imposed on them. In other words, in India, the world’s “largest democracy,” it is the majority Hindu community that determines the religious identity of its minorities and imposes Hindu values and customs on them.^{9, 10}

Distortion of Sikh history and theology, in an attempt to defuse the “Sikh identity”, is a common theme of the Indian Government propaganda and Hindu controlled news media. For example, two historians of Jawaharlal Nehru University, Satish Chandra and Bipin Chandra have distorted Sikh religion and history via books prescribed by the National Council of Education Research and Training (NCERT) for high school classes, XI & XII, respectively.^{11, 12, 13, 14} This is the reason why the Indian government was concerned about the Sikh Chair at UBC or for that matter at any other university. Why did the UBC administration comply with the wishes of the Indian government? After all, UBC kept the chair vacant until a suitable candidate who met Indian government’s approval was found. And that is why Harjot Oberoi, who grew up in Delhi and got his M.A. degree from Jawaharlal Nehru University was selected whereas several other well-qualified candidates with better credentials were rejected. According to Oberoi:

“My interest in social history was originally provoked and then sustained by my teachers at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, particularly Professors Bipan Chandra, Sarvepalli Gopal, Romila Thapar, K.N. Pannikar and Satish Saberwal. I hope this work reflects what I learnt from them.”¹⁵

Under a storm of strong criticism against his qualification and suitability to head the Sikh Chair, Harjot Oberoi vacated it in 1995. Nevertheless, UBC found him a place in the Department of Asian Studies from where he continues his schedule of distorting Sikhism at every given opportunity.

References

1. Jasbir Singh Mann, Surinder Singh Sodhi, and Gurbakhsh Singh Gill (Eds.). Invasion of Religious Boundaries. Vancouver: Canadian Sikh Study & Teaching Society, 1995, Appendix IV.

2. Ibid., pp. 1-373.

3. Ibid., Appendix III.

4. Ibid., Appendix II.

5. Ibid., Appendix III.

6. Ibid., p. 303.

7. Ibid., Appendix V.

8. Ibid., Appendix I: Memorandum of Agreement Between the Federation of Sikh Societies of Canada and the University of British Columbia.

9. Sangat Singh. The Sikhs In History. New Delhi: Uncommon Books, 4th edition, 2001, pp. 280-83.

10. J. S. Grewal. The Sikhs Of The Punjab. New Delhi: Cambridge University press, 1994, p. 183.

11. “Legal Fight Against Distortion of Sikh History.” Abstracts of Sikh Studies, 1996, April-June, p. 120.

12. “Misrepresentation of Sikh History in NCERT Textbooks.” Abstracts of Sikh Studies, 1996, July-September, pp. 77-84.

13. M.S. Rahi. “Sikh History as it is being taught in Indian Schools!” Spokesman, June 1998, pp. 39-41.

14. M.S. Rahi. “New Brand of Indian Secularism and the Sikhs.” Spokesman, January 1999, pp. 8-11.

15. Harjot Oberoi. The Construction of Religious Boundaries: Culture, Identity and Diversity in the Sikh Tradition. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2004, p. xii.

Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter

Print this Article Email this Article Comment on this Article