'Muslim' listed as mother tongue, no sign of Urdu: DU admission form sparks uproar

Delhi University seems to have outdone itself in the creativity department this year — by redefining what counts as a 'Mother Tongue'. The undergraduate admission portal, which graciously opened on Thursday, came bearing an unexpected gift: it listed 'Muslim' as a language. Yes, you read that right — not a religion, not a community, but apparently now a dialect. Linguists everywhere, please pack up. DU has cracked it.

Naturally, the internet exploded — turns out people aren't thrilled about having centuries of socio-linguistic evolution undone by one university form. Especially since Urdu — you know, an actual language, recognised under the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution and spoken by millions — was nowhere to be found.

But DU wasn't done sprinkling its wisdom just yet. The form also generously included terms like ‘Bihari,’ ‘Chamar,’ ‘Mazdoor,’ ‘Dehati,’ ‘Mochi,’ and ‘Kurmi’ in the 'Mother Tongue' drop-down — because who needs linguistic accuracy when you can just throw in castes and occupations for flavour?

Abha Dev Habib, general-secretary of the Democratic Teachers' Front, wasn’t exactly clapping in admiration. “DU registration form for the UG admissions can’t be more Islamophobic,” she pointed out. Shocking, really, that someone didn’t find this exercise in ignorance charming.

“How can a Central university publish such a form?” she asked, clearly unaware that, apparently, common sense is no longer a prerequisite for form design. Her Facebook post also helpfully reminded the university that Muslims — like other humans — tend to speak the languages of their region. Revolutionary thought.

Dr Mithuraaj Dhusiya from DU’s executive council appeared to be suffering from the same outdated notion that a “premier university” should, you know, respect “diversities and multilingualism.” He labelled the whole episode as “sad” and suggested fixing it. Radical.

Meanwhile, Rudrashish Chakraborty of Kirori Mal College saw the form for what it was: “a brazen attempt to create an ‘other’ out of the largest minority community in the country,” and a way “to poison the minds of the innocent applicants.” But hey, maybe that's what someone at DU thought would really make this year’s admission cycle memorable.

He went on to note, without a trace of sarcasm, that this move was “a serious threat to the Constitution of India,” since it openly mocked the Eighth Schedule and basically tossed the inclusive ideals of a Central University into the nearest bin.

In the end, someone at DU apparently realised that calling a religion a language might not be the best look. The portal was briefly taken down and the offending bits quietly patched up. Apology? Clarification? Accountability? That part of the form must still be loading.

With media inputs