JU clash: Inquiry panel chief resigns, university to appoint new committee head

KOLKATA: Professor Subha Shankar Sarkar has resigned as the head of a five-member committee constituted by Jadavpur University to probe into the recent vandalism on its campus allegedly by ABVP workers, citing his inability to conduct the inquiry effectively, a varsity official said Monday.

The university will appoint a new committee head to carry out the investigation, he said. JU acting registrar Selim Box Mandal said, "Sarkar has communicated his inability to head the panel. A new chairperson would be appointed shortly."

Sarkar told Jadavpur University Vice Chancellor Chiranjib Bhattacharjee through an email on Saturday that he would not be able to take up the assignment.

"I informed the Jadavpur University vice-chancellor immediately after receiving the communication about my appointment. I am currently in Delhi, and the inquiry would require regular interactions with the people who were present on the campus during the incident," Sarkar, who is the former Netaji Subhas Open University vice-chancellor, told PTI on Monday.

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ABVP, Left-students group clash at Jadavpur University

Sarkar said the university authorities had suggested that he could conduct the proceedings online, but he felt that such an inquiry could not be carried out effectively through virtual interactions.

A clash broke out between members of ABVP and Left-leaning student groups at Jadavpur University here early on August 20, with both sides accusing each other of bringing outsiders into the campus.

The two camps had traded allegations over the presence of people from outside the university. RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) alleged that members of the Left student organisations, including the SFI and DSO-DSF, had started confrontations under the cover of a meeting of the Faculty of Engineering and Technology Students' Union (FETSU).

The Left-leaning groups, however, accused the ABVP of bringing outsiders into the campus and indulging in vandalism. Sarkar's decision came hours before the teachers' wing of the RSS, the Akhil Bhartiya Rashtriya Shaikshik Mahasangh, wrote to the JU vice chancellor, opposing his appointment.

The teachers' organisation questioned Sarkar's selection to lead the inquiry panel, referring to his removal as the chairman of the West Bengal School Service Commission in January 2022 following proceedings before the Calcutta High Court over alleged irregularities in recruitments.

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Conspiracy to blame us for JU plaque: ABVP spokesperson

The university had announced the formation of the committee on August 21, following a demonstration by students, teachers and citizens protesting against the alleged vandalism on the campus.

The RSS-linked teachers' wing, in its letter to the vice-chancellor, said Sarkar's appointment could raise doubts about the "credibility, independence and impartiality" of the proposed inquiry. It demanded that the panel be headed by a retired judge of the Calcutta High Court or Supreme Court to ensure an independent and transparent investigation.

Bhaskar Sardar, president of the organisation's JU unit, welcomed Sarkar's decision to resign. Sarkar was appointed chairman of the school service commission in December 2020 while serving as vice-chancellor of Netaji Subhas Open University, Sardar claimed.

The Calcutta High Court had expressed dissatisfaction over the functioning of the commission and questioned his continuation as its chairman, he said. "Such a man cannot head an inquiry panel into attacks against us.

A conspiracy was hatched against us for the damage of the university plaque," an ABVP spokesperson said.