As the relay hunger strike by two suspended professors of the University of Hyderabad entered the fourth day today, the varsity said the onus was on them to defend themselves by responding to show-cause notices.
"They have to first respond to the memo/show-cause notice. They have to make an appeal rather than others submitting memorandums on their behalf, then only the administration can consider and the review committee will look into it," the Pro Vice-Chancellor-1 and varsity spokesperson Prof Vipin Srivastava told PTI.
A group of teachers today submitted a memorandum to the registrar and sought revocation of the suspension. They also met Vice Chancellor Prof Appa Rao Podile.
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Earlier in the day, the SC/ST Teachers Forum held a demonstration in front of the varsity's administrative office demanding immediate revocation of suspension and withdrawal of cases against the two teachers and the students in connection with the March 22 incidents (when there was a violent protest by students outside the VC's official residence).
The administration suspended associate professor K Y Ratnam and assistant professor Tathagat Sengupta on the ground that they had been arrested by the police (along with 20 students) for more than 48 hours following the March 22 protest, but they failed to inform this to the varsity, which is mandatory.
Radhika, the mother of the research scholar Rohit Vemula (whose suicide on January 17 triggered the students' protests) also took part in the relay hunger strike today.
Ratnam, Head of the Centre for Ambedkar Studies and faculty member of Department of Political Science, and Sengupta, a faculty member of Department of Mathematics, are on relay hunger strike against their suspension since June 14.
Prof Srivastava denied the allegation of the SC/ST
Teachers' Forum's that the action against the two teachers was taken "in a fit of vindictiveness".
The suspension order was in accordance with the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1965, he said.
"A government servant, shall be deemed to have been placed under suspension by an order of Appointing Authority with effect from the date of his detention, if he is detained in custody...For a period exceeding forty-eight hours," he said, quoting the rule.
As to why the two teachers were suspended with effect from March 22, after using their services for the entire duration of the semester until May, Srivastava said, "There was a delay on the University's part to give suspension letters because in view of the inflammatory situation on the campus, the VC wanted to let the Executive Council of the UoH to deliberate on it. On June 6, this matter was discussed, and accordingly (after Council's nod) they were suspended."
The University had not filed the case against the two teachers but it was the police who had, he pointed out.
Also, as per the letter of Ministry of Home Affairs, an employee who is arrested for any reason must intimate it to the official superior promptly which the two teachers did not do, he said.
However, the teachers who met the VC today claimed in a press release here that both Ratnam and Tathagat had intimated their respective department heads about their arrests.
Both had stated this in their letters to the review committee of the varsity, it said.
