Several teachers' associations, including the Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers Association (JNUTA), have condemned the "arbitrary" suspension of four faculty members of the South Asian University, saying the action is an attempt to "intimidate and silence" them.
The SAU suspended the faculty members on Wednesday in connection with the 2022 student protests against the downward revision of monthly stipends for Master's students. Office orders placing the four faculty members under suspension over allegations of misconduct and violation of the varsity's code of conduct were passed on June 16. The university has accused the faculty members of instigating students to protest, failing to perform appropriate duties, and having association with a Marxist study circle, a faculty member claimed on the condition of anonymity. The teachers' groups from across the country demanded that the suspension orders be "immediately withdrawn".
Apart from the Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers' Association, other groups who have issued a statement in support of the suspended faculty members are the All India Forum for Right to Education, the State Platform for Common School System-Tamil Nadu (SPCSS-TN) and the University of Hyderabad Teachers' Association (UHTA).
The teacher' bodies expressed solidarity with the suspended faculty and said the institution "should be run transparently and democratically keeping the interests and well-being of its different constituents in mind". In a statement, the JNUTA strongly condemned what it termed as "unprecedented harassment, coercion, and intimidation of the SAU faculty" by the administration. "The suspension order served to four faculty members by the SAU administration is an attempt to intimidate and silence the faculty and the students who raise their voice against the arbitrary and authoritarian actions of the administration," the JNUTA alleged. The JNUTA asserted that it stands in complete solidarity with the faculty of SAU in defending their rights to speak truth to power.
"The JNUTA demands that the suspension orders of SAU faculty and rustication/expulsion order of SAU students be immediately revoked and the administration starts a dialogue to discuss the demands for an agreeable resolution at the earliest," the statement read. The SPCSS-TN, a body of educators and activists, said the administrative actions of the SAU, an institution facilitated by SAARC, are not in "consonance with the international understanding of human rights and democracy". "SPCSS-TN appeals to the member countries of the SAARC to uphold the freedom of thought and expression of every individual and come forward to advise the administration of SAU to give up the authoritarian attitude and to adopt a democratic process to resolve the issues raised by the students and provide all necessary help needed for the administration to fulfil the legitimate demands of the students," the SPCSS-TN said.
"The administration should be advised to revoke the suspension of teachers and not to undertake any punitive action on students for choosing the form of struggle to highlight their demands," the body demanded. Meanwhile, the All India Forum for Right to Education (AIFRTE) contended that it is alarmed by the situation in SAU and strongly condemns how it is spiralling out of control.
The body put forth three demands -- the institution be run transparently and democratically keeping the interests and well-being of its different constituents in mind, suspension notices issued against faculty members be immediately withdrawn, and disciplinary action against students be withdrawn and treated as ultra vires until they may be investigated through well-defined university procedures and norms demanded.
Demanding revocation of the suspension, the UHTA said this kind of inquisition of teachers is highly objectionable.
