Accepting the demand of JNU teachers and students, the varsity administration has decided to include two new members in the existing three-member high-level committee set up to inquire into the February 9 event where anti-national slogans were allegedly raised.
Decision was taken on Wednesday evening in a meeting called by vice-chancellor M. Jagadesh Kumar with the deans of all the schools and chairpersons of all the special centres to discuss steps being taken to restore normalcy.
Well-placed sources present in the meeting said that the JNU V-C had accepted almost all the demands of the students’ union and the teachers’ association. “The V-C accepted that two new members will included in the high-level committee and their names will be finalised soon. He also promised that the police will not allowed inside the campus as demanded by the students and JNUTA,” he added.
However, some senior faculty members present at the meeting opposed the decision. “Many members present in the meeting opposed the decision, but during the meeting it was felt that decision was pre-decided and V-C had to surrender to the demands of the JNU Teachers’ Association,” said another member present at the meeting.
Another senior faculty member alleged that whatever decision had been taken was decided earlier and the meeting was just a formality. “Despite opposition from many members, the V-C informed the senior faculty members present in the meeting about the decision,” he said.
However, the JNU administration rejected the demand that it should seek JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar’s release and dropping of sedition charges against him, saying that both the issues were beyond its control.
“We have not arrested Kanhaiya, we have also not charged anyone with sedition. It is for the police and court to take a call in this matter. Both these demands are beyond our control,” said JNU registrar Bhupinder Zutshi.
The JNU students and teachers had on Monday appealed to the V-C to take a stand in favour of the five students accused by the police in a sedition case and who had surfaced in the campus after being on run for over 10 days.
The meeting of the top JNU officials, chaired by the vice-chancellor on Monday, deliberated on return of the five students but could not take a decision whether the police should be allowed to enter the campus to arrest them or the students should be asked to surrender.
