The fight between the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) administration and the varsity’s teachers’ association intensified on Tuesday, with the teachers reaching out to opposition parties to make the fight one “to the finish”.
Members of the JNU Teachers’ Association (JNUTA) were protesting against a range of issues, including allegations of sexual harassment against professor Atul Johri and recent replacement/ removal of deans and chairpersons of schools and centres over allegedly refusing to implement the administration’s compulsory attendance rule.
Complaint
On Tuesday afternoon, Congress Lok Sabha MP Sushmita Dev and party leader Sharmistha Mukherjee visited the protest venue and heard the teachers out. They suggested that the teachers’ grievances could be taken to the President, the Visitor to the university.
Meanwhile, in a sign that things were escalating, newly appointed chairperson of the Centre for Historical Studies Umesh Kadam filed a complaint with the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, marked to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, claiming that he as a “Dalit” was repeatedly insulted and put down over the past few years as a professor at the centre.
He also addressed the media on the matter. Prof Kadam has just replaced the previous chairperson, who was removed from her post for allegedly refusing to implement the new attendance rule. However, teachers at the centre rejected Prof. Kadam’s allegations.
“We have always cooperated with him ever since he joined and helped him settle down at JNU. We reject the charges of bias,” said a professor.
In a related development, Ms. Dev wrote to Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar in connection with the sexual harassment charge against Prof. Johri.
She demanded his removal and an inquiry into why the university administration was not taking action in the matter.
