St. Stephens College is yet again the subject of controversy. This time concerning the legality of the appointment of the Principal of the College, Reverend Valson Thampu.
For a long time now, the validity of Thampu taking over as the Principal of St Stephens has been questioned. In 2006, when he joined as the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) of the college, he did not have a PhD, which was a prerequisite to hold the post.
In December, 2007, he secured a PhD in Theology.
However, DUTA (Delhi University Teachers Association) alleges that Valson Thampu secured a fake degree to retain his position in the college, and Theology is a subject not recognised by the UGC.
At a press conference in CP, Aditya Narayan Misra, the DUTA President, claims that he procured the degree from Allahabad Institute of Agriculture without even enrolling himself for two years, which is the rule.
This is nearly a month after Thampu issued show cause notices to two teachers in the History department of the college for participating in “anti-principal talks” in class.
According to Mishra, the show cause notices to the two teachers, Tasneem Suhrawardy and Sangeeta Luthra Sharma, on January 9 was “a senseless act of desperation springing out of his attempt to cover up the illegality of his own appointment�. The teachers claim that the action taken against them was a result of “personal, partisan and petty considerations�.
DUTA demands that Thampu give a written apology to the two teachers and has also asked DU Vice-Chancellor Deepak Pental to remove Thampu from the principal’s post. DUTA plans to hold a demonstration in the college on February 5 and at the V-C’s office on February 8.
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