Chandigarh 20, June:In a statement from Chandigarh, Prof A.S. Ahluwalia, Convenor, Punjab Federation of University Teachers Association (PFUTA) has taken a serious note of the Enquiry instituted by the government of Punjab against Prof. Jai Roop Singh, Vice-Chancellor, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.
It is the fourth Vice Chancellor who is not being allowed to function as per the rules and regulations of the University calendar. It is an open infringement on the autonomy of the university system, and goes against the spirit of what Knowledge Commission has recommended to the government of India. The post of the Vice Chancellor has to be granted immunity from political interference in his/her day-to-day functioning. I strongly condemn the way Punjab government is interfering with the autonomy of the university system and appeal to the Punjab government to stop such infringement immediately.
In another statement Prof. Manjit Singh, Convenor, Punjab Federation of University and College Teachers’ Organizations (PFUCTO), has condemned the Punjab Government for its interference with the functioning of the Universities in Punjab. Instituting enquiries on flimsy grounds against the incumbent of prestigious position of the level of a vice chancellor is a shameful act on the part of the Punjab Government. Punjab government must keep its hands off the universities of Punjab, the only autonomous institutions where politics is at the back seat. We have received a copy of a similar resolution from the teachers association of GNDU and extend full support to them in case they decide to fight out such interference.