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DU’s Plea Against Construction of High-Rise in North Campus Dismissed

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The Delhi University’s plea challenging construction of a private real estate high-rise building in the University campus was dismissed by the Supreme Court on the grounds of “delay and laches.”

The Supreme Court dismissed the Delhi University’s (DU) plea against the construction of a high-rise real estate building in the North Campus, as permitted by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA). On 12th May 2011, M/S Young Builders Private Limited received permission from the DDA for the construction of a housing society in the University campus without any height restrictions.

A total of three hectares of land was allotted to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) by the Ministry of Defence for the construction of the metro station, out of which two hectares were leased out for the construction of the private housing society. After a delay of seven to eight years, the University filed a plea challenging this construction before a single-judge bench in the Delhi High Court, however, the bench took note of the “delay and laches” and dismissed the plea on 27th April 2015.

Following this, a consequential intra-court appeal was moved before a two-judge bench of the High Court after a delay of 916 days. The court refused to overlook this delay of over two and a half years, pushing the University to move to the top court.

DU countered the DDA’s act of permitting construction of high-rise private buildings on campus and also sought to be excused for the delay in filing the first plea before the High Court. The University claimed that M/S Young Builders Private Limited’s construction of the group housing society was in violation of the Master Plan of Delhi-2021 and against the larger public interest, “given the fact that the project site in question and its vicinity are within the North Campus and that it contains historical buildings.” It also alleged that the construction site of these buildings was in proximity to various ladies’ hostels of the University, hence raising “an important privacy concern.”

However, top court bench, comprising Justices R Banumathi and A S Bopanna, stayed in agreement with the dismissal of the plea by the High Court on grounds of delay and laches. It said, “despite the writ petition having been filed belatedly in respect of certain actions which had commenced in the year 2005 and even though the writ petition was filed after obtaining approval of the Executive Council, no steps were taken to file the writ appeal for 916 days after disposal of the writ petition. In such circumstances, the cumulative effect of the delay and laches cannot be ignored”.

The Court also said, “We are of the opinion that not only the Single Judge was justified in holding that the writ petition inter alia is hit by delay and laches but the decision of the Division Bench in dismissing the LPA on the ground of delay of 916 days is also justified and the orders do not call for interference.”

Featured Image Credits: Jagran Josh

Aditi Gutgutia

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JNU Protest Continues Despite Partial Rollback of Fee Hike

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The protest against hostel fee hike and draconian hostel rules in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has entered its second week.

On Wednesday, 13th November, the hostel fee hike was rolled back partially during the Executive Council (EC) meeting. The decision was announced through a tweet by R Subrahmanyam, Education Secretary, Government of India, which was later retweeted by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD).

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According to the revised structure, the single room rent has been revised to Rs 200 per month, while the double bed rent has been revised to Rs 100 per month. The outrage surrounding the new manual emerged as the single room rent of Rs 20 per month was increased to Rs 600 per month whereas, double room rent was increased from Rs 10 per month to Rs 300 per month. However, the one-time mess security remains at Rs 5,500, the service charges remain at 1,700 per month along with the earlier utility charges. Moreover, Economically Weaker Section (EWS) students would receive assistance.

The Executive Council (EC) is the supreme decision-making body of the Varsity, which also has representatives from the JNU Teachers Association (JNUTA). The venue for the EC meeting was changed on Wednesday without prior information to the Students’ Union and the JNUTA. DK Lobiyal, JNUTA president quoted to PTI, “The meeting was supposed to be held at the Convention Centre inside the campus but when three EC members, professor Sachidanand Sinha, Moushumi Basu, and Baviskar Sharad Prahlad reached the venue, there was no meeting there.”

JNU students won’t call off the protest any time soon; if the draft manual is approved, it will be implemented soon. 14th November was observed as National Protest Day, wherein JNUTA along with DUTA, Federation of Central Universities’ Teachers’ Associations (FEDCUTA) and several student bodies rallied to save public-funded education in India, from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar.

Among the discontentment against the administration, activist and former JNU student, Umar Khalid spoke to The Quint, “The government and the JNU Vice Chancellor, Jagadesh Kumar, is giving the matter another twist. First, they said that the economically weaker sections will be aided by the administration, later the administration has come out with a press release stating that Below Poverty Line (BPL) students will be given concessions in the fee structure.” He further questioned the Government and media’s stance in propagating lies.

JNUSU’s former President Sai Balaji acknowledged the curfew and dress codes withdrawal, and said, “The government has played a cruel joke on the marginalised sections of students today.”  The JNU administration contested that the Varsity has not increased the fee for the past 19 years, regarding which JNUSU demanded a discussion before the proposed hike. The protest for the same continues.

Featured Image Credits: Noihrit Gogoi for DU Beat

Anandi Sen

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As An Institute of Eminence, Will This Be DU’s Institutional Decadence?

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The status of Eminence raises apprehensions towards the future and functioning of Delhi University (DU) under the threats of disintegration, privatization and excessive surveillance.

Just a month after the University of Delhi (DU) along with four other institutes, IIT Madras, IIT Kharagpur, Banaras Hindi University and Hyderabad University, was granted the status of Institute of Eminence (IoE) with the objective of achieving the stature of world class institute. The next step in ensuring this initiative was the signing of the trilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the University of Delhi, the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the Ministry of Human Resource & Development (MHRD), which was duly completed the previous day.

But this further aggravates the skepticism regarding the University getting under the purview of an irrevocable authorization which substantially raises concerns of disintegration, excessive surveillance and privatization of the University, in the name of ‘Autonomy’, ‘Eminence’ and ‘Increased Government Amenities’ in this status provided.

Further the implementation of the Draft New Education Policy (DNEP) timeline of 2020 in October 2019 itself by the University is concerning in itself, the timeline which has to do with the abolition of statutory bodies like Executive Council, Academic Council and Departmental Council / College Staff Council by the constitution of all powerful Board of Governors (BOGs).

This BOGs will also be unaccountable to the Academic Council or Executive Council and hence, will come directly under the Rashtriya Shiksha Aayog (RSA). To add on to this, the elected component will be terminated and will be replaced by nominated members from stakeholders, abroad the University with the provision of weeding out inconvenient element periodically.

The One Thousand Crore Rupees grant, which is to be sanctioned over a  period of ten years from the Central government comes at an expense of new jurisdictions under the BOGs and their matters which will also  be devoid of any critical scrutiny of Executive Council (EC), Academic Council (AC) and Finance Committee (FC). Interestingly, the IITs which are receiving grants under this scheme have till now received only Rs 48 crores in the last two years out of the total Rs 1000 crores sanctioned.

The crisis does not ends here, the creation of such a system under the status of Eminence, has severe repercussions for academia and academics as well. Apart from the BOG and RSA surveillance which will be left on its own terms of grants and maintenance very soon, this status will confine the parallel structure for DU when it is ought to receive the entire limelight and government patronage and expected reverse adulation.

The system will even make the institution appear as a worthless vestigial organ from which the government can turn its face anytime for its inevitable signing up MoUs with backed up private institutions to sustain itself. This autonomous parallel structure of Eminence will also legitimize the infiltration of faculties from outside the DU, by relegating the existing academics and professoriate to back benches or a second and third class citizenship in terms of employment and salary structure, as this all falls under the power of BOGs.

The BOGs will also have the power to decide differential salaries and individual compensation for its faculty within the same rank and scale, thereby cultivating an atmosphere of hegemony and prejudice. The variable pay structure and the non-accountability of the Board of Governors to Academic Council and Executive Council will turn this institution into a tyranny, with the Centre laden with the power.

Undoubtedly, the status of eminence can act as an instrument of decadence for the country’s prime public university, erasing the gap between the corporate funded educational institutions and government institutions that bear the charge of promotion of the marginalized communities.

It is even more disheartening to see that after hundred years of hard work, efforts and the ever growing prominence round the world, the status of Eminence rather than a helping tool of promotion & growth, is used to hinder the University’s growth, when the upliftment of young minds should be the government’s priority. It becomes really essential for the present authorities to stress on this matter and look for the most judicious alternative that suits the university, its students and faculty and administration themselves.

 

Featured Image Credits: DU Beat

Faizan Salik

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DU Oversight Committee Approves Syllabus for Four Subjects

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On the recommendations of the oversight committee, the competent authority has approved the syllabus for English, Political Science, History and Sociology.

The oversight committee put in place for the revision of the syllabus for first-year undergraduate courses at the University of Delhi (DU) has approved the changes in the curriculum of four subjects – English, Political Science, History and Sociology, and has asked the departments to consider some of its recommendations.

According to a report in The New Indian Express, in letters to the departments, the DU Deputy Registrar has notified that the syllabus for the first semester of Political Science, English, History, and Sociology as well as the syllabus of the General Elective papers for the same has been screened by the competent authority.

It has also been recommended that the updated and complete curriculum is to be uploaded by the departments on their website to invite consultations and suggestions from the student body. The committee has also directed that the syllabus, after revisions and edits, will then have to be submitted for final approval by 31st October 2019.

Amidst protests, the DU Executive Council had returned the syllabus submitted for undergraduate programmes for these key subjects to their respective departments. The syllabus was met with objections raised by some teachers and students, who protested that the revised syllabus was intended to put forth a right-centric ideology.

The Oversight Committee had given the respective departments a deadline till 31st July 2019 to complete the revision process of the syllabus, after taking into account the objections raised by different members.

Meanwhile, DU has asked its Executive Council (EC) to consider the change in modalities of the School of Open Learning (SOL) and Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board (NCWEB) by conducting semester-wise examinations like DU.

The council stated that the agenda of the meeting was notified to them just a day before the meeting, so they weren’t given sufficient time. EC member Rajesh Jha told The New Indian Express that the members were not given enough time to consult the stakeholders of this decision. He also added that many of the EC members couldn’t even attend the meeting.

Feature Image Credits: News18

Bhavya Pandey

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