A lecturer at Netaji Subhash Institute of Technology (NSIT) has alleged the Dean of Undergraduate Studies of using “illegal” means to reduce the marks of some of the students in the subject of Environmental Science.
Surendra Kumar Yadav, a lecturer of Environmental Science (FE-006) at NSIT, recently wrote a letter to Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, and Manish Sisodia, the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, regarding issues with the marks of students in the subject.
The letter, dated 4th September 2018, stated that he had awarded decent marks to all his students, however, the Dean of Undergraduate Studies of the college, Dr Sujata Sengar, reduced the marks of some students through unfair means due to her “biases” against the students.
The course is set up for students in their second and fourth semester of BE Undergraduate Programme. At the end of the semesters, after the lecturer’s signature, the final mark sheet needs to be signed by the dean. However, Yadav alleges that she refused to sign it, and the papers evaluated and checked by him were sent for rechecking intentionally, so that the final score of some students could be reduced.
He further says that the Director of the college was also involved in the same, as he is like a “puppet in her hands.” Yadav obtained the two different mark sheets by filing an RTI after some of his students told him that they had not scored well despite their hard work. The two different mark sheets were attached with the letter to the authorities.
The letter further requested the authorities to take an action against the dean or she would “spoil the career of many such students due to her biases”. Yadav proposed the formation of an inquiry committee consisting of people not associated with NSIT, under the chairmanship of a retired judge, to look into the matter. Though the authorities have not replied to the letter yet, Yadav hopefully told DU Beat that “they must be doing something”.
He has been barred from teaching for the current semester, and says it is due to the dean’s “anarchy”.
DU Beat tried contacting Yadav for the names and the contact details of the students who have suffered in the situation, but to no avail.
A student in the third year of Electronics and Communication Engineering, on the condition of anonymity, told DU Beat about the general discord and negativity in the institution with respect to the Dean.
When DU Beat contacted Sengar, she said “I certainly refuse the allegations. However, I am not in a position to comment on this, as of now.”
In a protest held by the All India Student’s Federation (AISA) from the Civil Lines Metro Station to the residence of Chief Minister (CM) Arvind Kejriwal on 31st August 2018, the students demanded concessions for students travelling on AC buses.
Led by AISA leaders like President Kawalpreet Kaur and Secretary Madhurima Kundu, the thirty-odd strong group of students marched to Raj Niwas shouting slogans for the reduction in a price hike for AC buses.
Five members of the party including Ms. Kaur were allowed to go in to discuss their demands with the CM, while the rest of the students sat at dharna in front of the barricades outside the CM’s residence. After almost six hours of the sit-in protest, during which the party members outside sang protest songs and spoke about issues troubling the common student like fee hike, a conclusion was reached. In a press release, AISA members raised allegations of manhandling by the police inside the CM’s residence when a student from Hansraj College was kicked out. However, later they were soon called back into the CM’s office to wait. Finally, around 7 p.m. the CM met the student leaders and agreed to ensure the entire process for validation of the Student’s Bus passes.
AISA has been protesting for this issue since 25th January 2018 when they led another mass delegation of students to the CM’s office. The CM had then agreed to extend the validity of DTC bus passes from four months to six months for students and extended its preview to AC buses as well. However, since then, no such plan was executed.
In an official press release by AISA, the party mentions that the CM has agreed to complete the validation of the Student’s Bus Pass in AC buses within a month from 1st September. Mr. Kejriwal also tweeted recently about expediting the same.
Directed Transport Minister to expedite the proposal to allow student pass in AC buses also.
In the same press release, AISA also mentions that it will now continue to further their demand and meet the Housing and Urban Minister, Hardeep Puri, on 3rd August 2018, demanding metro concessional passes for students.
The incident took place on Tuesday when Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi’s current Chief Minister, was visiting Satyawati College for their NCC fest. Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia were the chief guests of the event. As the CM was leaving, his car was obstructed by four students who were stopped and detained for over an hour.
These students belonged to left-wing backed organisation AISA and claimed wanting to present a four point memorandum to the CM which included better facilities for students such as metro concessions passes and special university buses for women etcetera.
The authorities rejected the alleged claims of the students and claimed that they wanted to click selfies with the CM and hence tried to stop his car. Mr. Bharat Singh the NCC officer of Satywati, also in charge of heading the fest described the student’s claim as baseless and reinforced that they actually just wanted to click selfies with Mr. Kejriwal.
The students later identified as Dhanpal, Raj Singh, Raj Aryan and Utkarsh Bhardwaj, stated that they wanted to peacefully approach the CM when they were blocked by the security personnel and detained.
Disclaimer: Bazinga is DU Beat’s weekly column of almost believable fake news!
With the fest season around the corner, and Delhi Government being in the mood to experiment with new policies and attention grabbing tactics, Kejriwal has now come up with a rather amusing order. The Delhi CM has ordered DU colleges to have a compulsory muffler stall at their respective annual fests!
The organising committee members of various colleges, who are on their toes over their annual fest preparations, have to meet a new request by the CM, of setting up muffler stalls at their respective fests. Insiders have shared with us that following the odd-even policy, Kejriwal is planning to derive the young voter’s opinion on the policy. He is planning to do that by asking them to buy mufflers to show support to the odd-even policy and its continuation.
According to sources, Kejriwal has launched a massive ‘Main Muffler Wala Kejriwal’ campaign among colleges so as to launch a survey among students about AAP policies in general and the Odd-Even rule in particular. As a part of the campaign, most of the well-known DU Colleges would set up an ‘AAP ka Muffler’ stall where students who support the odd-even ruling take the muffler and register themselves with the volunteers.
On being quizzed by us, one of the union members of a renowned DU college, on condition of anonymity told us, “We’ve been told to incorporate this ‘special stall’ at our fest, else we have been indirectly cautioned of consequences of not following this order. We already had sponsor hurdles and other tasks to take care of, and now this is diverting our minds.”
An inside source, while talking to us divulged that, “This is a constructive move towards a survey among students so we thought why not take advantage of the fest season and the popularity of Kejriwal ji’s muffler, so we developed this campaign with a lot of thought and analysis. We hope that students become a part of it enthusiastically.”
So what are you waiting for? Find your ‘AAP ka muffler’ soon at a fest near you!
Those in power and those fighting for it have made headlines this year, some for very controversial reasons. With the whole world eagerly anticipating the American Presidential election in 2016, it has been an eventful year for the electorate that’s watching the potential candidates. The elections that have taken place in 2015, both in India as well as abroad, will have long lasting impacts on politics in the years to come.
International Politics
US Presidential Election candidates
As the world watches with bated breath, the potential party candidates for American President have been battling it out, trying to swing public support in their favour. Business tycoon and probable Republican party candidate, Donald Trump, leads with the highest support base, according to public opinion polls. His support base has risen from 27 percent of the Republican voters in October, to a whopping 41 percent in December. In the wake of shootings at San Bernadino in December, Trump courted controversy when he proposed a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States till better security measures are implemented. This suggestion only served to enhance his growing support-Republican voters were seen to be in favour of his idea, though it garnered flak from all quarters globally. A petition on the British Government’s website, seeking to ban Trump from the UK, has gathered over 500,000 signatures.
Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders | Source: theodysseyonline.com
Meanwhile, former Vermont Senator, Bernie Sanders, and former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton are vying for the Democratic party nomination. According to polls, Sanders lags Clinton by close to 25 points. Bernie Sanders and Trump have been on a collision course over their disparate views on economic policies, and other issues of national and international issues, with Sanders holding a more liberal, progressive viewpoint.
UK General Election, May 7
For the first time since 1992, a Conservative Party majority government, with a working majority of 12, was elected in 2015, with David Cameron securing a second term as Prime Minister. The Labour party with Ed Miliband at the helm came a close second in terms of votes. The Liberal Democrats, who had governed in coalition with the Conservatives since 2010, suffered their worst defeat since the 1970 elections.
David Cameron | Source : www.telegraph.co.uk
Referendum in Greece, July 5
The European Commission, International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank jointly proposed certain bailout conditions on Greece, according to which, certain fiscal reforms would have to be implemented by the debt-ridden country, in consultation with the IMF, EC and ECB. A referendum, the first since 1974, was held to decide if these conditions were to be accepted. The public (over 61 percent) voted a clear no.
Myanmar elections, November 8
The National League for Democracy, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, secured an absolute majority in the national parliament. The 2015 general elections were the first openly contested elections since 1990. The Union Solidarity and Development Party which has a strong military backing, with Thein Stein as President, had been ruling since 2010. The NLD’s victory marked a complete overthrow of the vestiges of the military rule that Myanmar had previously experienced till 2010.
Suu Kyi | Source: www.storypick.com
Though the NLD won the elections, its leader, Suu Kyi is barred from holding the position of President according to the constitution since both her children are British citizens. The President will be chosen indirectly by the NLD dominated Legislature by March 2016.
National Politics
Delhi Assembly Elections, February 7
The underdog, the Aam Aadmi Party, made history when it secured an absolute majority, winning 67 out of 70 seats, trumping the political heavyweights-the Congress and BJP. Arvind Kejriwal assumed office for the second time as Delhi’s CM, having resigned after 49 days in office in 2014, due to issues over the Jan Lokpal Bill. Kejriwal is currently engaged in a spat with the BJP over allegations that Arun Jaitley was involved in certain irregularities, during his term as DDCA chief.
Arvind Kejriwal | Source: www.zeenews.india.com
Bihar Legislative Assembly Elections, October 12-November 5
The Bihar elections were a face off between the ‘Mahagatabandhan’ (an alliance between the JDU, led by Nitish Kumar in Bihar, and RJD, led by Lalu Prasad Yadav, supported by the Indian National Congress) and the BJP led NDA. The RJD won the highest number of seats (80) with the JDU coming a close second with 71. Nitish Kumar secured his third term as CM with the 2015 elections. The elections were a landslide victory for the alliance, as it trumped the NDA and BJP’s victory in the 2014 general elections, indicating that public opinion might have swung against Modi.
Nitish Kumar | Source: www.indianexpress.com
Narendra Modi’s foreign visits
During his tenure in office, PM Narendra Modi has made several international trips and met with leaders of various countries, in the interest of foreign policy and bilateral relations. Modi’s visit to the UAE in August was the first by an Indian PM in 34 years. He also became the first Indian PM to visit Mongolia in May. During his international visits, Modi sought the support of the leaders of several countries for India’s permanent membership in the UNSC.
Modi with Nawaz Sharif | Source: www.bbc.com
On December 25, Modi made a sudden, impromptu visit to Lahore and met his Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif. His ‘surprise,’ unannounced visit was seen globally as a sign of good will and improving relations between the two nations which have historically been at loggerheads.
Politician and social activist Arvind Kejriwal held an interactive session with the youth at the community centre, North Campus on 18th of February, 2013. The session was organized with the aim of confronting the youth on the problem of corruption and how the Lokpal bill drafted by the government is not really practical.
The session began at 2 am. Volunteers wearing caps saying “main hun aam aadmi” could be spotted easily. Kejriwal was sitting on a pedestal wearing the same cap and addressing people that had gathered around him. Interestingly, the crowd that had gathered to listen to him was not more than 50% of the mass uprising that had happened earlier, making one feel a little odd and at the same time wonder whether this movement or the people associated with this movement, might have lost their sheen.
Kejriwal had brought with him sundry statistics and was frequently quoting data to support his arguments. He was essentially dealing with the Lokpal bill clause by clause, pointing out the flaws in each clause. For example, he quoted a particular clause that said that people who come under scrutiny for possessing large amounts of money for reasons unknown, would be given 2 days to justify why a raid should not take place at their house. This, according to Kejriwal, will give the grant the criminals an avenue to clear their houses of the black money and come out scot free. Also, talking in light about the Delhi gang rape incident, he said that he’s sure the government will not pass strict laws against rapists, and will not strengthen mechanisms for non bailable offences, because half the ministers sitting in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are themselves criminals and they will all go to jail, the moment such acts are passed.
The session included active interactions, where Kejriwal was seen taking questions from the audience. However, the session did not attract the footfall most expected it to attract and therefore it largely remained a low-key event.
