Chandigarh university removes alumni section after netizens point out distorted map of India

Showed parts of J&K as Pakistan territory

On June 15, netizens pointed out that the Alumni section of Chandigarh University shows the wrong map of India and depicts Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) as part of Pakistan.

Several netizens reacted to the post and demanded action. Supreme Court lawyer Shashank Shekhar Jha tagged Punjab Police and said, “Dear Punjab Police, Kindly initiate legal action against Chandigarh University for putting an incomplete map of India on their website and showing parts of Ladakh and Kashmir in Pakistan.”

Dear @PunjabPoliceInd: Kindly initiate legal action against @Chandigarh_uni for putting incomplete map of India 🇮🇳 on their website and showing parts of Ladakh and Kashmir in Pakistan 🇵🇰 pic.twitter.com/aoW0mXVX7I

— Shashank Shekhar Jha (@shashank_ssj) June 15, 2022

Author Arin Kumar Shukla said, “Use of these kinds of maps must be prohibited in the nation. This not only is anti-India, but also hurts sentiments of our Kashmiri brothers and sisters.” Shukla tagged Home Ministry and Prime Minister’s office in his tweet.

Use of these kind of maps must be prohibited in the nation. This not only is anti-India, but also hurts sentiments of our Kashmiri brothers and sisters. Take action @AmitShah @AmitShahOffice @PMOIndia https://t.co/WWBjp2pyJx

— Arin Kumar Shukla FRAS (@arinkumarshukla) June 15, 2022

Twitter user Shreeniwaz said, “Have shame you Chandigarh University! DGP Chandigarh Police, Home Minister Office, Amit Shah take strict and immediate action on the culprits. Extremely irresponsible behaviour by #Chandigarh University which is responsible for shaping the young generation of this country.”

https://twitter.com/shreeniwaz/status/1537124818172010496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1537124818172010496%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.opindia.com%2F2022%2F06%2Fchandigarh-university-removes-alumni-section-after-netizens-point-out-distorted-map-of-india%2F

Chandigarh University removed the Alumni section after outrage

After netizens pointed out the wrong map, the Alumni section disappeared from the University’s official website. When we tried to access the “search by map” page on the Alumni section, it showed a 404 error.

However, the page was available on Archive.org. From the screenshots available on Twitter and from the archived page, it is clear that the University used the wrong map of India. However, there is a catch to it.

It seems that the developer who created the website used a third-party map to embed it in the website. On the bottom-right corner of the map, it says, “Leaflet | Map tiles by Stamen Design, CC BY 3.0 — Map data © OpenStreetMap”.

OpenStreetMap is a free-to-use open map built with the help of contributors. When we checked the website OpenStreetMap, it also had the wrong map of India. As it is an open-source map and users contribute the data, it is possible that the incorrect information was fed by the contributors.

It is notable that, unlike OpenStreetMap, Google Maps (which would have cost Chandigarh University to embed) show maps according to the location of the user. For example, if someone is looking at the map from India, PoK will be shown as part of India, but if someone is looking from Pakistan, PoK will be shown as part of Pakistan. Google maps have redrawn the maps to avoid any legal challenges it may face in different countries depending on their official political maps.