Shillong, Sept 15: The North Eastern Hill University Teachers’ Association (NEHUTA) has demanded investigation into the financial, administrative and academic irregularities allegedly involved by the current Vice-Chancellor, Prof SK Srivastava.
“(We) appeal to all concerned to launch an investigation into all financial, administrative and academic infirmities committed by Prof Srivastva. It is disgrace that a premier university like NEHU still has to bear with all the omissions and commissions of the incumbent VC,†NEHUTA president, Prof XP Mao said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
The demand came a day after the NEHU had announced that the annual grant of the NEHUTA has been withheld for boycotting the XXV Convocation held on November 28, 2018 in violation against the university’s statutes/rules.
Terming this claim as misleading, Prof Mao said NEHUTA’s call for boycott of Convocation arose from VC’s non-compliance with statute pertaining to holding of convocation in the year 2018.
“Once again the outgoing VC is misleading by a poor attempt to justify withholding of NEHUTA grants on false excuses,†he said.
He said the NEHUTA implored upon the VC to convene University court before the convocation is held, as convening court meeting before the convocation is mandatory but still the VC held the convocation without the court meeting.
He also questioned as to why the VC is raking this sheer infirmity committed by him after nearly three years again?
“The sole intent behind such diversionary tactic is to cover up his unstatutory act of withholding NEHUTA grant. His askance for the list of attendees in NEHUTA meeting is utterly devious and it smacks of vindictiveness and he failed to answer why he needs the list of attendees,†he added.
As per NEHUTA’s constitution, Prof Mao said that it is the general body of NEHUTA that decided to call for boycott of the unstatutory convocation.
He alleged that the VC, out of frustration and desperation of bringing down the rank of the University along with his all round failure to run the University in his tenure is resorting to cheap tactics.
“In the same way, he is holding back gratuity of retired Professors out of vindictiveness, which has invited due legal process on him,†he said.
Prof Mao further stated that the NEHUTA is compelled to say that by misrepresenting NEHU statute 44, the VC is attempting to gag NEHUTA so that his misdeeds are not exposed.
“By attempting to make use of statute 44 for what it is not meant for, the VC is only damaging the University, which just adds to the litany of his damaging and disparaging acts,†he said.
He said because NEHUTA has exposed his violations of Acts, statutes, ordinances, rules and regulations of the University, so he intended to stop NEHUTA from pointing it out to various Authorities by evil means like withholding its statutory grant and by personally targeting teacher members of the association.
The NEHUTA also slammed the outgoing VC for showing utter lack of sentivity towards the request of the association to donate the earmarked funds for the year 2018-19 and 2019-20 to the PM care fund and also Meghalaya Chief Minister Relief Fund to fight COVID-19.
It also alleged that NEHU did not have a Chancellor for the last five years solely because of VC’s faults by not informing the Centre.
Meanwhile, the NEHUTA has reiterated its demand to the President of India not to extend the services of the incumbent VC beyond his term, which will end on September 23.