Motihari University woes continue as relay strike against VC enters 43rd day

Patna, July 17: The relay hunger strike by the faculty members of Mahatma Gandhi Central University (MGCU) in Bihar's Motihari, demanding the removal of Vice-Chancellor Dr. Arvind Kumar Agrawal, has entered the 43rd day.

The faculty alleged that VC Dr. Arvind Kumar Agrawal is harassing and threatening to implicate them under false charges.

The teachers' agitation started on May 29 when the university refused to give Jain a NoC to Zoology teacher Boudhi Prakash Jain. He had applied for a no-objection certificate (NoC) from the university after applying for a teaching job at a university in Rajasthan. The varsity refused a NoC citing central government employment rules that bar an employee working in a central institution from applying in other central government institutions.

A Show Cause can't be issued to Dr Jain, an employee of MGCU by the MGCU administration for violation of any rule of the University of Rajasthan even before appearing for an interview. As far as violation of CCS Rules 1964 is concerned for concealing facts, Dr Jain intimated the authorities all the facts before appearing in the interview in due time for the issue of NOC. CCS Rules 1964 has not yet been adopted by MGCU in the Executive Council.

As per reports, VC said a letter from the University Grants Commission clearly states that the service conditions of central government employees are applicable to permanent staff of central universities too. The teacher has violated the central government rules as he applied to a Rajasthan university without getting the NoC.

Dr Shashikant Ray said, " Around 50 faculty members are on relay hunger strike for the last one and half month. The strike was continued during summer vacations too. But we did not let the strike in the way of our academic works."

Ray further said, " The VC told a girl student to file molestation charges against a protesting faculty. However, the VC claimed that the voice in the audio record was not his."

"If he is innocent then why is he not sending the audio clip to the forensic lab to prove his innocence," asked Dr. Ray.

Not the first time:

To sustain the environment of fear, on the last working day before the completion of 1 year of the probation period, Dr Shashikant Ray and Dr Amit Ranjan (26 days prior to 1 year of probation) were handed the termination letter out of the blue. No preliminary proceedings were made against these faculty members nor were any Show Cause notices served to them before termination. Due to the intervention of the 8th Executive Council special meeting held on 16-Oct-2017, these two faculty members were reinstated in the University unconditionally on 17th October 2017.