Surat-based Veer Narmad South Gujarat University (VNSGU) has issued a clarification after social media outrage over a professor’s alleged Hinduphobic posts. Users on X circulated screenshots of several tweets by the professor Madhusudan Raj and demanded strict action, even tagging Gujarat Police. The VNSGU has said that although he used to work in the university, he left in 2021.
One of the tweets that triggered anger was about a Hanuman statue in Texas. An American account had suggested removing the statue linking with the hiked fee for H1B visa, and Madhusudan Raj had retweeted it adding the words “Smash it.” Social media users accused him of openly spreading hatred against Hindu beliefs.
The American’s tweet had said, ” Now that we are kicking out all of the H1B Indians it shouldn’t be too hard to get the government to take down this hindu demon monkey statue in Fort Bend County, Texas.” And professor Madhusudan Raj supported the comment, asking the statue to smashed.
After the controversy, many people began tagging VNSGU, claiming that Madhusudan Raj was serving as an Assistant Professor there. In response, the university clarified through its Human Resources department that while he was once a faculty member at VNSGU, he had resigned back in 2021. The university confirmed that he has had no association with them since then.
Officials also said that the university is reviewing the matter and will issue a detailed statement. They stressed that VNSGU has nothing to do with his personal views or his current activities.
Reports suggest that Madhusudan Raj is now living abroad. His X profile describes him as a “Born again Christian.”
The controversy has grown because this is not the first time his posts have attracted attention. He has previously made several remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Hindus, and Gujaratis. In some past posts, he called PM Modi a “clown” and compared India’s condition under him to that of a dictatorship. He also ridiculed religious practices, temples, and faith, which many online users called deeply offensive.
Given the seriousness of these repeated posts, the university has said that legal options are under consideration, though it underlined that Raj is no longer part of their faculty.
