Gurugram University’s Department of Political Science and Public Policy had invited Professor Zoya Hasan to deliver a talk titled ‘Palestinian Struggle for Equal Rights: India & Global Response’ on November 12. However, as Maktoob Media reports, Hasan was notified on November 10 that the talk was cancelled, with no rescheduled date offered.

Zoya Hasan is a prominent Indian political scientist and professor emerita at Jawaharlal Nehru University, known for her work on Indian politics, gender studies, and democratic rights.

The talk was set to be chaired by Gurugram University’s Vice-Chancellor and chief patron, Professor Dinesh Kumar, and the invitation to speak had come directly from university faculty, who expressed interest in holding a discussion on the topic of Palestine. Yet, Hasan reportedly had reservations about the event taking place. She reportedly told The Wire, “I readily accepted the invitation… though fully aware and apprehensive that it might actually not happen.”

This incident follows a recent trend among Indian institutions of pulling talks on Palestine-related topics. Last month, Jawaharlal Nehru University’s (JNU) Centre for West Asian Studies cancelled planned seminars on Palestine due to “unavoidable circumstances.” According to Maktoob Media, a similar incident occurred at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, where a lecture by Professor Achin Vanaik on ‘Israel-Palestine: The historic context’ was called off.

These cancellations are unfolding against the backdrop of declining academic freedoms in India. As highlighted by Maktoob Media, the Free to Think 2024 report by Scholars at Risk, a global network of 665 universities, revealed that India’s Academic Freedom Index (AFI) has now reached its lowest level since the 1940s. The report, released on October 8, 2024, underscores the challenges scholars face in discussing contentious international issues.