KOZHIKODE: The Calicut University has removed the poem "Ode to the Sea" by the Saudi-born poet Ibrahim Sulayman Muhammad Arbaysh alias Ibrahim al-Rubaish from the BA/BSc syllabus following the controversy over the poet's background.

Vice-chancellor M Abdul Salam accepted the recommendation of a committee headed by MM Basheer that said the poem may be withdrawn from the syllabus. Basheer, in his report, said through the poem is good, teaching such a work of art, if that is written by a terrorist, could lead to 'moral degradation. "Some quarters believe that he is a mufti of the Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula," the report said.

He observed that there was no ulterior motive from the part of those who had selected the poem in the anthology 'Literature and Contemporary Issues'.

The book was prescribed for the third semester students of BA/BSc under the university. A section among the teachers had objected to including the poem written by a person who was detained at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp for his alleged links with al-Qaida. According to editors of the anthology, the poem was selected as it vividly expressed the issue of human rights, one of the core topics for study.

Cultural activists and writers believe that there is no valid reason for removing the poem from the text. "There is nothing in the poem that advocates terrorism or violence. If at all there is politics, that is anti-US politics and we need not be apologetic for it. In a democracy, there is freedom to express one's political beliefs," said K Satchidananan, poet and former chief executive of the Kendra Sahitya Akademi.

"Personal background of the artiste has no relevance in the study of a work of art. We know nothing about the background of authors such as Valmiki or Homer," he said.

Critic and activist K E N Kunjahammed said the US should not be the only authentic voice on deciding what terrorism is. "Moreover, the way the poem was withdrawn smacks of authoritarianism. Those who selected the poem were not given a chance to explain their point of view," he said.