Motilal Nehru College faculty begin indefinite strike over alleged DUSU violence

NEW DELHI: Faculty of Motilal Nehru College (Evening) have begun an indefinite strike over alleged incidents of assault on teachers, hooliganism, trespassing and damage to public property during campaigning for the Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) elections, a college teachers' association said on Thursday.

The Staff Association said the protest, which began on Wednesday, would continue until its concerns are addressed. Representatives of the Delhi University Teachers' Association (DUTA) and teachers from several other DU colleges are also expected to join the protest in solidarity, it said.

"The administration or police are not interested in taking any action. But this cannot continue, so we will be on indefinite strike till the incident is addressed," a faculty member said. "Until further notice, all teachers from the college have joined the strike and all academic activities have been suspended from our side," the faculty member added.

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Teachers to boycott election duties

The protest follows an incident on September 16, the day campaigning for the DUSU elections concluded, when a teacher at the college was allegedly assaulted by a student campaigning for the polls.

Faculty members had staged a protest at the college following the incident and demanded action against the student. A teacher had alleged that the faculty member was beaten and grievously injured.

The teachers had also said they would file an FIR and boycott election duties, stressing that faculty members could not be subjected to violence during the election process. At the time, teachers said they were not immediately certain which student organisation the alleged campaigner was associated with.

Polling for the DUSU elections was held on September 18, while counting took place on September 19. The latest protest also raises concerns among DU faculty members over security arrangements and conduct of students during university election-related activities.

The Staff Association has called for the concerns over the alleged incidents to be addressed and sought support from teachers and other stakeholders.