Teachers' Day in India, celebrated on September 5, has traditionally been a day to honour educators and their contributions to society. The date coincides with the birthday of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, a philosopher and India's second president. However, revelations about Radhakrishnan's alleged plagiarism and controversial views on women have raised questions about the appropriateness of celebrating his birthday as Teacher's Day.

Radhakrishnan's philosophy was grounded in Advaita Vedanta (a school of Hindu philosophy), reinterpreting this tradition for a contemporary understanding. He defended Hinduism against what he called "uninformed Western criticism", contributing to the formation of contemporary Hindu identity. He was influential in shaping the understanding of Hinduism and earned a reputation as a bridge-builder between India and the West. In later years, Radhakrishnan's approach to Eastern philosophy also came under scrutiny. Critics argue that he oversimplified and misrepresented complex Eastern philosophical concepts in his efforts to make them more palatable to Western audiences. In doing so, he may have compromised the authenticity and depth of these philosophical traditions.

In January 1929, Jadunath Sinha, a relatively unknown lecturer of philosophy at Meerut College, accused Radhakrishnan of extensive plagiarism. Sinha claimed that Radhakrishnan had plagiarised from the first two parts of his thesis, titled 'Indian Psychology of Perception, Vol I & Vol II,' which were submitted to Calcutta University for the Premchand Roychand Studentship in 1922. 

The allegations, documented by Utpal Aich, retired Indian diplomat and independent researcher, pertained to Radhakrishnan's book 'Indian Philosophy Vol. II,' published in 1927, which allegedly incorporated stolen paragraphs from Sinha's thesis. Radhakrishnan had published another book titled The Vedanta according to Sankara and Ramanuja in 1928, which was actually a reprint of Chapters 8 and 9 of his book “Indian Philosophy Vol. II.” That book also had extensive pirated paragraphs from Sinha’s Premchand Roychand Studentship thesis. Luckily for Sinha, he had published extracts from those two parts of his Premchand Roychand Studentship thesis in the Meerut College Magazines of 1924 and 1926.

After writing letters about this matter, which were published in the Modern Review magazine, and defamation from Radhakrishnan, Sinha sued him in the Calcutta high court for infringement of copyrights of his original literary works. 

There was a lot of pressure on Sinha to settle the case out of court. All the senior professors who sympathised with Sinha and were convinced of the plagiarism refused to stand as a witness for him in the court. Sinha also didn’t have the wherewithal to fight a prolonged legal battle . 

On the other hand, Radhakrishnan had both financial and social capital to manipulate, manage and obtain the help of his friends, especially that of Shyamaprasad Mukherjee, son of Sir Ashutosh Mukheriee. It was Sir Ashutosh Mukheriee, the then vice chancellor of Calcutta University, who had brought Radhakrishnan from Bangalore to Calcutta University for the prestigious post of King George V Professorship on a salary of Rs 1000 per month. His son, Shyamaprasad, who was also a close friend of Dr. Radhakrishnan, therefore, wanted to hush up the matter. 

The only book on Radhakirishnan’s plagiarism, titled A Reported case of Radhakrishnan’s Literary Piracy by Barin De, based on the documents submitted by Sinha in the court, conveniently vanished from the libraries in India, according to Aich.

The plagiarism allegations against Radhakrishnan cast a shadow over his legacy as an educator and philosopher. Such accusations not only question the integrity of a celebrated figure but also challenge the principles of academic honesty and authenticity.

Aside from the plagiarism allegations, Radhakrishnan's views on women have also raised eyebrows. He believed that the role of women was best fulfilled within the confines of marriage and motherhood. Notably, Radhakrishnan arranged the marriages of his daughters without their consent, and some of them were married off at a very young age, as mentioned in Radhakrishnan’s biography written by his son Sarvepalli Gopal.

The juxtaposition of his traditional views on women with his celebrated role as an educator, then, seem hypocritical. Celebrating a figure who held such views as the symbol of Teacher's Day may send the wrong message about the values that educators should uphold, including gender equality and women’s rights.

Another contender

Savitribai Phule's commitment to educating girls, especially girls from marginalised backgrounds, was revolutionary not only for her time but even today. Her unwavering dedication to breaking the barriers of caste and gender, along with her tireless efforts to provide education to those who were denied it, make her a true icon of education and social reform. It’s also important to mention here that Phule existed almost a century before Radhakrishnan and her ideas were centuries ahead of him.

Phule's extraordinary contributions as India's first female teacher and her relentless efforts in fighting caste-based discrimination make her an ideal choice to honour on Teacher's Day. She embodies the true spirit of education and social justice.

The case for Teacher’s day to be celebrated on January 3 i.e. Savitribai Phule’s birthday instead of on September 5, in my humble opinion, doesn’t even need to be made. A better birthday to commemorate and honour the true spirit and significance of a teacher doesn’t exist on the subcontinent. 

Phule is considered the pioneer of India’s feminist movement and women’s education in India. She, along with her husband Jyotiba Phule, started the first modern day school for girls in 1848 in Pune – at a time when girls were not allowed to go to school. 

This school, in Bhide Wada, which has so far existed in shambles, is only now, in 2023, being considered to be deemed as a heritage site and redeveloped as a national monument. 

The husband-wife duo opened 18 schools for children of different castes and established two educational trusts – the Native Female School, Pune, and the Society for Promoting the Education of Mahars, Mangs and others. They also opened a care center called Balhatya Pratibandhak Griha for children who were victims of rape, sati and those who escaped female infanticide.

Savitribai was the first woman in modern India to challenge the work prescribed for Hindu women by the scriptures n, social system and tradition for Shudra-Ati Shudras. She fought all her life for the liberation of Shudra-Ati Shudras and the liberation of women. 

The Phules stood as a direct challenge to Brahmanism and the road to ending their monopoly was paved with difficulty. The privileged ‘upper’ Brahmin class in their neighbourhood harassed the Phules because they belonged to the oppressed Mali caste. On her way to school, Savitribai was abused and had dung thrown at her. She simply changed into a spare saree she always carried with her and continued on her journey. 

They were eventually forced to leave Jyotiba’s father’s house in 1849 after being accused of committing the sin of studying against Manusmriti and its Brahmanical texts. Given the monopoly of the Brahmin over all resources in this country, especially education and the access it can provide, one must really sit and question why we think ‘Teacher’s day’ and its celebration should be one that commemorates Brahmanism and it’s inhuman exclusionary spirit that to this day marginalises such a vast population of this country. 

The Brahminical idea of a ‘teacher’ or ‘guru’, that glorifies the ideas of authority and respect over the well being and democratisation of knowledge, that upholds the varna system and assigns occupations by birth and justifies who is worthy of knowledge and who is not is simply a heartless and cruel system of discrimination. 

In a time when killings by suicide of students from SC/ST backgrounds in India’s premiere institutes is rampant because of the very Brahmanical nature of education in this country, it is important to remember and emulate Savitribai and what she fought for. 

Also read: Two Dalit Students' Suicides in Two Months Highlight 'Institutionalised Discrimination' at IITs

Teacher’s day should be about teachers who go against the grain, who fight injustice everyday, who crush hierarchies, who make education the tool of liberation that it can be and not about teachers who are plagiarists, who steal from their own students and further regressive views.

We have a tradition in this country, to glorify Brahmin-Baniya men, to shower them with laurels and to celebrate them to no end, to forgive and justify their misdoings and misgivings as mere products of their time. 

It’s time, I believe, for people to really question the oppressive systems of this country that we live under, to ask what true education is, to differentiate between an education that empowers and an education that teaches you to bow down to authority. And it is certainly time to honour the eternal legacy of Phule – an educator and social reformer par excellence. 

Priyanka Paul is an illustrator and writer based in Mumbai. Their work revolves around the themes of social justice, self exploration and understanding marginalisation.

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