Amidst the rife speculations that Dyal Singh College under Delhi University could be renamed, HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar stated that Centre will not allow Dyal Singh College to be renamed and will take action against its management committee for doing so without consent.
“We had earlier also asked them to reconsider the move. We will not allow the college to be renamed. “If there are two Dyal Singh colleges, they can call them A and B or 1 and 2 to differentiate but the original name cannot be changed,” Javadekar said briefing the media on the controversy.
The Minister's comments came following reports that the management had quietly renamed the college with banners of 'Vande Mataram Dyal Singh College' being put up. “The Ministry will take action against the college management committee for going ahead with the renaming despite me making a statement in Parliament that it cannot be done,” Javadear added.
Javadekar's reaction came after union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal tweeted against the management's decision and said that she had requested Prime Minister to sack Dyal Singh College managment head Amitabh Sinha for going against HRD ministry assurance that the name won't be changed.
A college official however said that there was no official change in the name of the college and it was done to distinguish between the two colleges - morning and evening - at the function.
A controversy had erupted last year too with various sections vehemently opposing the move to rename the college. The South campus college was named after Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia, founder of The Tribune Trust (1881) and Punjab National Bank (1894). The activist also set up a Dyal Singh Trust, which in 1910 established the Dyal Singh College in lahore.
Javadekar then had washed his hands of the controversy when he announced in Parliament that the college renaming was not the Centre's decision.
Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee's (DSGMC) general secretary Manjinder Singh Sirsa had issued a statement condemning the move. It added that the renaming took place despite Javadekar's assurance in the Parliament and that they would consider all options, including the legal route, to ensure that the original name of the college.