'Misrepresented, portrayed negatively': Indian-American student on Hinduism course by Houston University

NEW DELHI: An

Indian-American student

has claimed that the course on Hinduism offered by

Houston University

in US "misinterpreted and portrayed negatively" certain aspects of the Hindu religion. He also accused the professor of calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a " "Hindu fundamentalist".
Speaking to ANI,

Vasant Bhatt

said, "It was presented as a given and any affirmation of Hindu identity was framed as potentially fundamentalists and so that sort of creates this atmosphere where Hinduism is framed through suspicion and far as misrepresenting India's political landscape is concerned, I mean, in the early weeks of the course. The professor called the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, a Hindu fundamentalist, made the false claim that India is persecuting religious minorities, when in fact, a Pew Research study, from 2021, says that 89% of Muslims in India feel safe to practice their religion."
"So, clearly a lot of this, in the earlier weeks of this class, the course content was like overshadowed by, constant references to Hindu nationalism and political dominance, and it just creates this like ...picture of this, you know, tradition, and it just, leaves students with a sense of discomfort rather than, any meaningful insight or understanding of Hinduism," he added.
The university on Saturday defended its

Hinduism course

, saying that it was rooted in the academic discipline of religious studies and employed specific terminology, including "fundamentalism," as part of its scholarly framework. This came in response to a student complaint regarding the course "Lived Hindu Religion."

How the course unfolded: Student gives insights

Talking about his experience at taking the course, Bhatt alleged Hinduphobic bias and cited specific examples from the syllabus that he found troubling.
"I guess it began with specific examples from the course content and materials that sort of demonstrated this Hinduphobic bias. The clearest and most troubling example was found in the core syllabus itself and it stated that the word Hindu is recent, not found in scripture. Hindutva or Hinduness is a term that Hindu nationalists, those who believe Hinduism should be the official religion of India, used to designate their religion and denigrate others, namely Islam. This is what was said in the syllabus, and this is not some neutral academic statement, right?" he said.
"It's a sweeping claim that delegitimizes the identity of over a billion people worldwide. It implies that the term Hindu is not historically or spiritually grounded and it's rather this political invention that's tied to colonialism and religious intolerance and as a practising Hindu, and I imagine a lot of other Hindus, in my class, reading that in the syllabus was very painful because it was not phrased as an academic interpretation among many, but rather positioned as the baseline framing of the course," he added.
He further claimed that he had formally submitted a complaint to the dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences regarding concerns over the syllabus. In response, he was questioned about why he had not directly addressed the issue with the professor.
"The course content was presented in the earlier weeks of the semester and I did not speak directly with the professor and that was a very conscious decision. I was concerned about the possibility of academic retaliation and and this may sound dramatic, but, in this current climate, Hindu students who defend their tradition are often painted as, you know, aggressive or politically motivated even when they speak respectfully and in good faith. So, I was advised by people around me to not engage with the professor said, I decided to write a formal complaint and submit it to the Dean of the College of Liberal Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. The dean then forwarded my concerns to the Department of Religious Studies and the department, department's response was very disappointing," he said.

What did the university say?

The university reaffirmed its commitment to

academic freedom

and emphasized that faculty had the freedom to explore complex and sometimes challenging topics in their teaching.
"The University of Houston values academic freedom, which includes allowing faculty to explore complex and sometimes challenging topics in their teaching. While UH does not typically review individual lectures, the university maintains oversight of the curriculum to ensure it meets established academic and pedagogical standards. In religious studies, fundamentalism refers to a movement that claims to preserve the 'true' or original version of a religion -- asserting a strict, ahistorical, literal interpretation of scripture, dogmas or ideologies -- often in reaction to modern changes. Studying fundamentalism is not an act of judgment or bias but a way to understand how religions evolve and identify through discourse analysis," according to the official statement.
"The course applies academic frameworks to analyze how Hinduism, the religion of those who revere Hindu gods, like other world religions, has developed in historical, social and political contexts. Professors are encouraged to connect course content to current events when appropriate, as long as it is done in a balanced way that improves understanding of course content. For example, discussing the political rise of Hindu nationalism in India is part of understanding how religion and religious discourse function in the modern world, but it is not a critique of Hinduism as a whole," it added.