St Stephen’s principal Susan Elias visits founding society headquarters

New Delhi: Newly appointed St. Stephen's College Principal Susan Elias visited the headquarters of the Delhi Brotherhood Society (DBS), the organisation that founded the institution, and was briefed on its history and legacy, officials said on Tuesday. Elias, the first woman principal in the college's 145-year history, visited Brotherhood House in Civil Lines on Monday evening and interacted with senior officials of the DBS.

During the meeting, DBS representatives apprised her of the society's history and its association with St. Stephen's College , including the contributions of educationist and freedom movement supporter Charles Freer Andrews, popularly known as Dinbandhu C F Andrews. According to DBS officials, Elias was informed about Andrews' association with the college as a faculty member and the role he, along with former principal Sushil Kumar Rudra, played in facilitating Mahatma Gandhi's visit to the institution in April 1915. Senior DBS functionaries, including Monodeep Daniel and Brother Solomon George, were present during the interaction.

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Officials said Elias was also briefed on the activities of St. Stephen's Cambridge School in Rai village on the Delhi-Sonipat border, an educational institution established by the DBS. Elias expressed appreciation for the initiative and said faculty members from St. Stephen's College would visit the school and engage with students through academic sessions, they said. She also toured Brotherhood House, a nearly century-old building that serves as the headquarters of the society.

Elias assumed charge as principal of St. Stephen's College on Monday amid an ongoing dispute between the college and Delhi University over her appointment. She is the first woman to head the institution since its establishment in 1881.