Kolkata: The Jadavpur University on Monday blamed teachers and students for "gross irregularities" that caused academic loss, triggering an angry retort from the teachers' association, which trashed the charge as a "blatant lie". A circular issued by the Registrar Pradip Ghosh, mailed to teachers and other staff members of the university, said, "These misconducts are not expected and not desirable."
It said that "gross irregularities" have led to academic loss in JU. It also cited negligence and breach of trust, but stopped short of blaming the teachers for it. Reacting to the circular, Joint Secretary of Jadavpur University Teachers' Association (JUTA) Nandini Mukherjee said, "We feel it is a means of threat to us as it is blaming the teachers and the students for all the problems. What they have said is a blatant lie as we have been going to classes regularly all this while," she said.
The teachers lodged a protest with the Registrar against the circular. Ghosh, however, said it was not about the teachers. "It has got nothing to do with the teachers. It is about what some of the students did," he said. State Education Minister Partha Chatterjee said, "I do not know what is written in the circular. I have told the principal secretary of education department to take up the matter with the registrar and look into it."
Vice-Chancellor Abhijit Chakrabarti issued an advertisement in newspapers appealing to all concerned to come forward to overcome the impasse. "Negotiation in a democratic way is also most welcome. Students are advised to resume normal classes with immediate effect," Chakrabarti said.
He said that due to some unforeseen incidents in the recent past at Jadavpur University there is a considerable academic loss and the students are the worst victims. The circular, issued against the backdrop of the standoff between the students and the university authorities, has not gone down well with the students too.
On the intervening night of September 16 and 17, the students had gheraoed the university's VC, registrar and other members of the Executive Council demanding a fresh probe panel on alleged sexual harassment of a girl student inside the campus last month. The VC had said he feared for his life and called the police which freed him in the early hours of September 17 and also arrested 35 protesting students.
Many of the students alleged they were brutally beaten up by the police inside the campus. Since then classes have been affected as a result of frequent protests by students.
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