JNU teachers' body questions admission delays, PhD process; demands accountability

NEW DELHI: The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers' Association (JNUTA) expressed concern on Monday over what it termed a "messy and illogical" academic schedule for the upcoming semester, alleging widespread administrative lapses under the current university leadership. There was no immediate response from the JNU administration over the allegations.

In a statement, the JNUTA flagged irregularities in admission timelines, especially for PhD aspirants, and criticised the use of NET percentile scores in a way that it claimed distorts the final merit list. "Combining percentile scores from the NET exam with raw viva-voce marks defies basic statistical logic," it said, adding that the practice renders the written exam marks effectively meaningless.

According to the current schedule, while continuing students start attending classes from July 9, first-year undergraduate and postgraduate students will only complete their admissions by July 29, with a possible final round in mid-August. PhD admissions, meanwhile, are spread across September, with uncertainty over semester alignment and course durations.

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Faculty bypassed in key decisions

The statement also highlighted the exclusion of the June 2025 NET candidates from the PhD process, despite many having just completed their master's degree. Further, the JNUTA accused the administration of bypassing faculty opinions on reverting to the university's own entrance exams and misusing the APAR (Annual Performance Assessment Report) mechanism to over-regulate the academic staff.

"The VC's avoidance of a scheduled meeting with the JNUTA, despite an earlier commitment, shows the administration's indifference," the teachers' body said, noting unresolved promotion cases and arbitrary appointment processes during the summer break. A mass-faculty delegation is now scheduled to approach the vice chancellor's office on July 4 to register its protest and demand immediate redressal. The JNUTA reaffirmed its commitment to "saving the university from complete destruction" amid what it described as a steadily-deteriorating academic climate.