Faculty forum demands revocation of 2 professor's suspension

A forum of teachers at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) today demanded the varsity authorities to immediately and unconditionally revoke the suspension of two faculty members, who are on a relay hunger strike for last two days.
The two faculty members, Associate Professor K Y Ratnam and Assistant Professor Tathagat Sengupta, had on Tuesday launched the indefinite relay hunger strike outside the university protesting their suspension by the varsity on the ground that they had been detained (arrested) by police for more than 48 hours in March this year.
Ratnam, Head of Centre for Ambedkar Studies and faculty member of Department of Political Science and Sengupta, faculty member of Department of Mathematics, were on Monday served with suspension notice for allegedly not informing the university about their detention by police for more than 48 hours on March 22.

The SC/ST Faculty Forum and Concerned Teachers today demanded the university to withdraw all the cases filed against the faculty and students to restore a semblance of normalcy on the campus so that the institutional interests may not suffer.
"We, the SC/ST Faculty Forum and Concerned Teachers at the University of Hyderabad and the teaching fraternity are shocked at the order suspending two of our colleagues Ratnam and Sengupta," the Forum said in a release.
"This act of suspension does not only further the conflict on campus but seems detrimental to the interests of the University community. We condemn this act of suspension that is beyond the imagination or rules of this democratic institution," it said.

"What Professors Ratnam and Sengupta did on March 22 was primarily to appeal to the police to not brutalise students... for the University to suspend professors for an act that was actually the responsibility of the University itself (protecting students) is outrageous," the Forum said.

While it is true that any employee who is in custody for more than 48 hours is deemed to be suspended, the rules for suspension say this should be used sparingly, it said.
The suspension orders were issued after the approval of
the university's Executive Council in its meeting held on June 6, the first meeting since the episode of vandalism and disruption at the Vice Chancellor's lodge (official residence) on March 22 while a high-level meeting was going on inside the VC's camp office cum residence, the UoH had said.

Ratnam and Sengupta were arrested on March 22 in connection with the episode and consequently a case of criminal offence is under investigation against them, the university said.
However, the Forum asserted that in this case, there is no real "crime" of the faculty other than expressing their solidarity with students and trying to protect them from police "excesses".
The administration did not take any action immediately or for the entire semester that they were working. Under such circumstances, to suspend them beyond the period of their incarceration raises doubts about the administration's intention, it said.
"It is also surprising that their suspension orders cover the period where they have taught, evaluated and discharged all their duties to the institution with the full knowledge of the University," the Forum added.

The University of Hyderabad, popularly known as HCU, witnessed sporadic protests over the suicide of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula, with protesting students demanding removal of Appa Rao Podile from the VC's post.
Appa Rao was booked under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and for abetment of Vemula's suicide. The university has been on the boil since Vemula committed suicide on the campus on January 17, subsequent to which Podile went on a leave amid protest by students.