South Asian University, New Delhi

South Asian University (SAU) is an international university sponsored by the eight SAARC member states—Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Proposed by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the 2005 SAARC Summit, the university was established through an inter-governmental agreement, with India providing the majority of funding. It began admitting students in 2010 at a temporary campus in Akbar Bhawan, later moving to its permanent 100-acre campus at Maidan Garhi in South Delhi in February 2023, adjacent to IGNOU and Asola Wildlife Sanctuary. SAU offers Master's and MPhil/PhD programs in fields such as Economics, Computer Science, Biotechnology, International Relations, Legal Studies, and Sociology, with degrees recognized across SAARC nations. The university has a governance structure including a Governing Board, Executive Council, Academic Council, and Finance Committee. It has experienced leadership changes and several controversies, including disputes over student expulsions, faculty terminations, and academic freedom, some of which have led to legal proceedings in the Delhi High Court concerning the university's jurisdictional status as an international body.