Should teachers share their political opinions with students?

With Prof. Sabyasachi Das resigning from Ashoka University and Karan Sangwan being dismissed from UnAcademy, the debate has reached a boiling point.

Historians Romila Thapar and Harbans Mukhia (centre, sitting) delivering a lecture on nationalism at New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University campus in March 2016. When life in the country becomes chaotic as a consequence of the decisions taken by its leaders, teachers must give up their impartiality and tell students why such actions are harmful to the nation. | Photo Credit: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA

Can a teacher tell students whom to vote for and whom not to? Can she express personal opinions in class, especially political opinions? Moreover, can personal or political opinions have no relation to one’s scholarship?

People have different thoughts on this question. But before that, let us keep in mind that we are asking this question in India, where teachers are under attack. They are being arrested, forced to resign, or fired for their opinions.

In the first half of August, Ashoka University’s professor Dr. Sabyasachi Das felt compelled to resign after he shared some findings of his research paper on social media that were critical of the Bharatiya Janata Party. The university not only publicly distanced itself from the findings but announced that it did not like social media activism from its faculty. It went on to say that it does not put any pressure on teachers about their choices in teaching and research. 

Noted academic Pratap Bhanu Mehta resigned from the post of Vice Chancellor at Ashoka University in 2021 after the government expressed unhappiness with Mehta’s opinions published in the media. | Photo Credit: BHAGYA PRAKASH K

Earlier, writer and academic Pratap Bhanu Mehta had resigned from the post of Vice Chancellor at the same university. The government expressed unhappiness with Mehta’s opinions published in the media and the university said that although it had a high regard for Mehta’s scholarship, his political opinions had the potential to harm the functioning of the university.

Most recently, Karan Sangwan, a law educator with the online educational platform UnAcademy was fired by his institute, which alleged that he had violated the institute’s code of conduct, which requires a teacher not to air his personal opinions in class and influence students. 

Sangwan is a teacher of law and in one of his classes, while talking about the bills tabled in Parliament to revamp the Indian Penal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code, had asked students to vote for educated leaders. He said they should elect leaders who do not make decisions without thinking about the consequences.

Pertinent questions

The incident provoked debate around two questions. Is it correct to suggest that one should vote only educated people to office? We know that education and literacy are not directly related. It would be wrong to say that someone who does not have a degree is not educated. An educated person is one who can take sensible, rational decisions.

Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Kamaraj had no formal education but was known to be an effective administrator. | Photo Credit: The Hindu Archives

Kumaraswamy Kamaraj, who was Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu after Independence, had no formal education. But he is considered the most efficient and successful Chief Minister in the history of India to date. During his nine-year tenure, the number of school-going children in the State increased from 7 per cent to 37 per cent. He was the first to start the mid-day meal scheme in schools. Jawaharlal Nehru once remarked that Kamaraj might not have spoken English like his other contemporaries did yet gave the most efficient administration to Tamil Nadu. Will Kamaraj be called educated or not? Education is not just literacy-based education evidenced by degrees.

The second important debate is about whether teachers should tell students how to vote. Should teachers express their political opinions or not? Ashoka University or Unacademy says that teachers should not reveal their personal opinions to students. Their job is only to provide quality education.

Does this apply equally to schools and universities? It is believed that school students have impressionable minds and teachers can influence them easily. A teacher should not impose his opinion on a student; this is a commonly held opinion. But look at it differently. When you express your opinion in front of someone, even a student, they get a sense of equality. And yes, it would be equally essential that both the teacher and the student have an equal opportunity to express their opinions. It is possible that the student may remain silent in front of the teacher, but if the teacher has created such an atmosphere in the classroom that she feels confident enough to express her disagreement with the teacher, then this initiative of the teacher can also start a healthy discussion. How to deal with disagreement, engage with differing views is also something we learn or teach.

If a teacher expresses her political opinion, is she trying to influence students in an inappropriate way? There are teachers with different political leanings in schools and colleges. Students compare these various opinions and form their own. It is true to a certain extent that the opinion of a good teacher carries more weight than others because of his seriousness towards his discipline and class. But students are not necessarily so easy to influence.

Principle of fairness

It has been a topic of debate among teachers not only in India but across the world about the principle of fairness in the classroom. For example, what will be the meaning of the teacher’s impartiality during the discussion on the creation of the earth or the theory of evolution in a science class? In America, this discussion can be dangerous for a teacher. Yet the subject of politics becomes controversial. It is a misconception that only when a teacher expresses his opinion in an open manner the students will know his political ideology. Students can guess a teacher’s political leanings by the way in which she teaches.

Our selection of writers, texts, etc., reveals us. But we give undue weight to the teacher or educational institution in the formation of students’ opinions. We forget that students coexist in multiple spheres of influence: their family, friends, and the wider society. Teachers are only one part of this universe.

According to teachers, the problem is not so much with students as it is with the parents or the community. They are afraid that the child might go astray. They want the educational institution or teacher to confirm their own views and biases, and not do or say anything that might encourage the child to question them. Take the Ram Katha, for example. Should the teacher tell them about her own view of the different versions of the Rama story that abound in India? Should she talk to them about the different versions and ideas of Ram created by different poets? Should the teacher discuss the Rama version he likes more?

While teaching a poem, do you consider it your duty to inform the students of the opinions of different critics about it? Sometimes, even after this, students might want to know what you think about it yourself. By not sharing your own opinion or evaluation of the poem with them, you protect yourself from their criticism. Because when you share your opinion, students can also evaluate it and may also reject it.

Competing ideas

This is even more true in the case of politics. You can start a debate by stating your opinion and give students a chance to compare your review with competing ideas. For example, after what Karan Sangwan said, his students could argue with him on the necessity of education as a qualification for leaders in a democracy. That debate could have inspired the students to understand the background of the development of the theory of the constitution. It is foolish to assume that influenced by Sangwan, his students will shift their vote to Rahul Gandhi instead of Narendra Modi. Most students will probably just ignore him.

Karan Sangwan, a law educator who was dismissed by UnAcademy for violating the institute’s code of conduct, was merely discharging his duty as a teacher when he asked students to vote for educated leaders. | Photo Credit: YouTube Screengrab

But if Karan Sangwan does not voice his opinion, then he is not being honest in his profession. It is his right to express an opinion. And it is also his duty. It is also the right of the students to know the opinion of their teacher. Needless to say, it is not mandatory for students to accept the teacher’s views.

There are some exceptional circumstances in a country or society when teachers give up their impartiality while using their right to knowledge. For example, at the time of Donald Trump’s first candidacy, American psychologists said they were giving their opinion of Trump to the people of the country because in their professional opinion, Trump was dangerous for the country. They said that they were giving this opinion despite the restriction of their profession (Goldwater Rule) that no psychological opinion should be given about a person without examining him personally.

The American Psychoanalytical Association exempted its members from publicly discussing the mental health of Trump or politicians, ignoring the Goldwater Rule. It had to take this decision due to the extraordinary situation created by the candidacy of Trump. Their warning was not heeded, the consequences of which are still being borne by the people of America. Knowledge is also a responsibility.

Similarly, when a leader takes irresponsible decisions like demonetisation, GST, or announces a lockdown in the entire country at four hours’ notice, due to which life in the country becomes completely chaotic, a teacher must give up his or her impartiality and tell students why such actions are harmful to the nation. Such conversation is also necessary for the survival of the teaching profession. This is what Karan Sangwan was doing.

Apoorvanand teaches Hindi at Delhi University and writes literary and cultural criticism. His latest book is Muktibodh Ki Lalten.