Mumbai University senate members seek honorary DLitt for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar

Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. File Pic

Amid the annual budgetary senate meeting at Mumbai University, senate member Sheetal Devrukhakar-Sheth proposed conferring an honorary DLitt degree on late freedom fighter Swatantrya Veer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.

Several members of the senate, including those from the Yuva Sena, supported the proposal during the meeting. However, members of the Bombay University and College Teachers' Union (BUCTU) remained resistant to the notion.

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Bringing the discussion to a close, Pro Vice-Chancellor Ajay Bhamre said the process would have to follow the norms laid down under Section 129 of the Maharashtra Public University Act. The provisions of the Act will be reviewed and the discussion brought back to the senate, officials said.

MU's association with Savarkar

In 2025, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had called for the posthumous reinstatement of Savarkar's barrister degree, according to reports. To carry out the process, Mumbai University was tasked with preparing a proposal to be sent to the institutions concerned in the United Kingdom.

In May 2025, Fadnavis and the Governor inaugurated the Swatantryaveer Vinayak Damodar Savarkar Study and Research Centre to mark the freedom fighter's 60th death anniversary.