DUSU joint secretary slaps professor at Ambedkar College; DU teachers’ body demands action
A Delhi University teacher was allegedly slapped and assaulted by Delhi University Students’ Union joint secretary Deepika Jha and other members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Thursday, according to a group of faculty members, PTI reports.A video, purportedly showing the incident, circulated online and appeared to show a teacher being assaulted by a group of students inside Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar College in the presence of police. Several Delhi University teachers condemned the incident, calling it an attack on the dignity of educators.A professor, requesting anonymity, told PTI that a National Students’ Union of India candidate who had won a college council election was allegedly thrashed by ABVP members.
Teacher targeted while performing duty
The Democratic Teachers’ Front (DTF) said in a statement that the teacher, Sujit Kumar, who serves as convenor of the college’s disciplinary committee, was looking into similar incidents of campus violence involving students from different groups when he was assaulted.
ABVP’s statement
Jha, in a statement to PTI, said she had come to the college to address complaints of “misbehavior and physical assault” raised by students against Kumar. She added that Kumar “threatened” her and used “abusive language” in the principal’s room, and accused him of being under the influence of alcohol.“His repeated threats, constant staring, and indecent remarks made it quite evident that the said professor, Sujit Kumar, had once again come to the college under the influence of alcohol. In that moment of distress and anger, I reacted impulsively, for which I sincerely express regret,” Jha said.
DUTA demands inquiry
The Delhi University Teachers’ Association (DUTA) has written to the university vice-chancellor, demanding an inquiry into the matter.“We are deeply shocked to learn that a senior teacher at B.R. Ambedkar College has been slapped and assaulted by a group of students inside the college premises while performing his duty. The violence in any form is completely unacceptable in a democratic institution. This is an assault on the dignity of a teacher,” the association said in a letter to the vice-chancellor.DUTA added, “We request you to enquire into the whole incident and take immediate and exemplary action against those involved. Stringent action will send a clear message against indiscipline and lawlessness,” PTI reports.
Experts condemn ABVP’s conduct
Rudrashish Chakraborty, associate professor at Kirori Mal College, told PTI that the incident was “shocking” but “hardly surprising.”“It is part of a series of lumpen acts by ABVP not only in Delhi University but across the country, enabled by the active patronage of the DU administration, which has given ABVP a free hand to run riot across the University,” he said, according to PTI.(with PTI inputs)
