Education is turning schools, varsities into communal classrooms: Rajendra Chenni, ETEducation
Mysuru: Cultural thinker and retired professor Rajendra Chenni on Sunday said that schools, colleges and universities in the country are increasingly turning into training grounds for communalism, instead of spaces for critical and liberating education.
He was speaking at a session on ‘Cultural Resistance of Marginalised Communities’ during the national seminar held as part of the Bahuroopi National Theatre Festival organised by Rangayana.
Referring to national leader BR Ambedkar’s call for education, organisation and struggle, Chenni said education today has lost its emancipatory character. “A child enters school and comes out as a graduate with a communal mindset. That is why schools, colleges and universities themselves have become communal classrooms,” the noted writer said. Cultural resistance through education is essential to build a broader democratic political consciousness, he added.
Chenni explained that in Ambedkarite thought, a Dalit is not defined merely by caste, but by the consciousness to question exploitation and systems that deny freedom. “This understanding must reach society at large,” he said, noting that Dalits were historically portrayed only as passive victims deserving sympathy, a notion Ambedkar firmly rejected.
Speaking on the occasion, scholar Nataraj Boodal said Ambedkar not only gave India the constitution but also offered a powerful cultural constitution inspired by the Buddha. He noted that Ambedkar chose Buddhism after studying all major religions, seeing the Buddha as a rational thinker who diagnosed and treated human suffering.
Boodal cautioned that contemporary society worships the Buddha’s image while ignoring his critical wisdom. He distinguished spirituality from organised religion, arguing that spirituality could challenge hollow philosophies and false religions that controlled human lives for centuries.
He cited studies indicating that nearly 65% of Gen Z youth in Europe identify with no religion, urging Indian society to reflect deeply on this shift. “Ambedkar gave us a cultural constitution that guides our way of life. True liberation from intellectual bondage requires spirituality, not blind religiosity. No religion is greater than democracy,” he asserted.
The seminar also discussed the idea of “colonies” beyond caste, including those based on language, gender and region, and argued that both the oppressor and the oppressed remain trapped within the same oppressive structures.
The session included a presentation by Bhante Tupten Kaldan of the Sera Jey Monk Training Centre, Bylakuppe, who elaborated on Buddhist philosophy as a living, questioning tradition that encourages individuals to find their own path through critical inquiry.
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