The Department of Political Science being the second oldest department in the county was established in 1927. To begin with, admissions were made for B.A. part-I. The first batch of M.A. passed out in 1930. The First Head of the Department was Dr. Beni Prasad, a renowned historian, best known for his researches in Ancient Indian Political thought. His works "Theory of Government of Ancient India" and "Theory of State in Ancient India" were his doctoral dissertation submitted to London School of Economics. He was the Head of Political Science Department till 1945.
The teaching faculty at that time comprised of lecturers from the History Department on a part time basis. The first appointment of a full-fledged lecturer in Political Science was that of Mr. Ilyas Ahmad in 1928. In the wake of partition of India, Mr. Ilyas Ahmad migrated to Pakistan in 1949, joining Karachi University, where he rose to the position of Professor and Head of the Department of Political Science. His two text Books, "The Machinery of Government" and "Principles of Politics" earned wide popularity among students and teachers alike. His third book "The social contract and the Islamic State" is also a marvelous study in the realm of Islamic Political Philosophy.
In 1945, Dr. Beni Prasad expired at the young age of 45. Another renowned historian, Dr. Tara Chand accepted the Headship of the Department. In 1948, a new branch namely Diplomacy and International Affairs was added to Political Science. This branch produced statesmen, politicians and diplomats of high stature whose performance was acclaimed nationally and internationally. In the same year, Dr. Tara Chand left the University to join the Government of India as Education Advisor. Dr. Tara Chand also completed the onerous task of writing the history of "India's freedom Struggle" in 4 Volumes. Similarly his major contribution to Indo-Islamic Culture and Philosophy is the work "Influences of Islam on Indian culture" which has become a classic for researchers and historians. Dr. Tara Chand later became India's ambassador to Iran and then a member of Rajya Sabha. Prior to joining Government of India he had succeeded Dr. Amar Nath Jha as Vice-Chancellor and his chair in the Political Science Department was offered to another renowned historian, Dr. Ishwari prasad, who occupied it till his retirement in March, 1954. Dr. Ishwari Prasad's major contributions are on Medieval Indian History.
After the retirement of Dr. Ishwari Prasad in1954, Prof. A.B. Lal, being the first man from the discipline itself, became the head of the Department and he occupied the chair till his elevation as Vice-Chancellor of the University in 1968. Prof. A.B. Lal was later on made Vice Chancellor of University of Rajasthan at Jaipur. He finally retired as Chairman, M.P. University Grants Commission.
After Prof. A.B. Lal, several other political scientists have headed the Department, namely Prof. A.D. Pant, Prof. Mohan Lal, Prof. H.M. Jain, Prof. U.K. Tiwari, Prof. Alok Pant, Prof. M.P. Dube and Prof. Alok Pant. Now Prof. Mohd. Aslam is the Head of the Department.
The Department of Political Science began functioning in 1927 and has been headed by such eminent academics as Dr. Beni Prasad, Dr. Ishwari Prasad and Dr. Tara Chand. The Department gained recognition due to the excellence and achievements of its students in academics, administrative services and other fields. It has a distinction of producing in largest number of JRFs and NET scholars in the country, and this fact has added to its reputation as an important centre of teaching and research. In an age of globalisation, several challenges confront the developing world, including India. The Department is academically alive to the socio-economic and political issues and strives to motivate students and the faculty to confront the challenge of the present and devise strategies for the future.
The Department aims at pursuing academic excellence and all round development of students, motivating them to acquire cognitive and political skills, to become profound scholars, original thinkers, sincere researchers good and responsible citizens, capable of playing an active and effective role in the nation-building.