The academic council of the Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law (RGNUL) in Patiala has cleared a proposal to change the institution’s name to National Law University, officials said on Saturday.
Patiala Congress MP Dharamvira Gandhi criticised the move and called it a “deliberate attempt to polarise voters ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections”.
Vice-Chancellor Prof Jaishankar Singh said the university’s academic council had approved the proposal to drop “Rajiv Gandhi” from the name and rename it National Law University from the existing Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law (RGNUL). Singh said the proposal has now been forwarded to the executive council for further necessary action.
Sources said that after approval from the executive council, the proposal will be sent to the Punjab Higher Education Department. They added that an amendment to the Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law, Punjab Act, 2006, will be required to implement the change.
Meanwhile, Punjab Health Minister Balbir Singh, who represents Patiala Rural constituency where the university is located, said he was not aware of the proposal and would refrain from commenting until he had full details. “I will study the matter and gather complete information before making any statement,” he said.
The move has drawn sharp criticism from Patiala MP Dharamvira Gandhi, who again termed it a “deliberate attempt to polarise voters ahead of the Assembly elections”. He said institutions established during the tenure of Jawaharlal Nehru and Rajiv Gandhi were created with the vision of strengthening education, promoting scientific temper, advancing technology, and ensuring social welfare. He said these institutions represent a legacy of nation-building and progressive development.
He added that that the BJP-RSS is systematically trying to rewrite history and rename institutions associated with the Congress legacy across the country. Such steps, he said, are meant to divert public attention from core issues like education, healthcare, unemployment, environmental degradation, and growing socio-economic challenges affecting citizens.
Established under the Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law, Punjab Act, 2006, the university started operating in Patiala in May 2006 and received approval from the Bar Council of India in July the same year.
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