DUTA PRESS RELEASE: 24 OCTOBER 2014 on Deshbandhu College Recruitment Ghotala

The DUTA strongly condemns the Deshbandhu College authorities for going ahead with Interviews to fill up 73 teaching posts despite serious violations being pointed out by the Deshbandu College Teachers’ Welfare Association and the SC/ST Teachers Forum of the college. These interviews are being conducted on the basis of a public advertisement (13.5.2014; copy attached) which is in flagrant violation of the Government’s Reservation Policy. Out of the 73 posts advertised, only 9 are reserved for SC and 4 for ST categories. This amounts to only 12.3% of posts reserved for Scheduled Castes, and 5.5% for Scheduled Tribes which falls far short of the mandated requirement of 15% and 7.5% respectively. Further, the 2 posts reserved for Persons with Disabilities (PWD) have not been earmarked for specific subjects, which is in violation of the standing Court Order.

In addition, the Teachers’ Welfare Association has pointed out that despite a letter from the Dean of Colleges (31.7.2014) asking for the Reservation Roster to be recast in accordance with changes in workload after the rollback of FYUP, the college has gone ahead on the basis of the pre-rollback advertisement without recalculating the Workload and Roster. Neither were the Roster and Workload placed for approval before the Staff Council or the Governing Body. In fact, the meeting of the Governing Body in which teachers’ representatives had pointed out this lacuna, was held on 16.10.2014 whereas letters for the interviews had been dispatched a day earlier.

Responding to the teachers’ appeal, a DUTA delegation went to the college today and tried to meet the Principal. However, the Principal refused to meet the DUTA delegation. Two officials of the SC/ST Commission had also come in response to an appeal from the College SC/ST Forum. They met the principal and are shortly expected to submit their report to the Commission.  Meanwhile, the DUTA has lodged a formal complaint with the SC/ST Commission in which its Memorandum to the UGC and MHRD highlighting the violation of the Government’s Reservation policy have also been attached.

The DUTA urges the Government of India to promptly intervene and ensure that the Constitutional mandate of Reservation for the SC, ST, OBC and PWD categories is fulfilled. Recruitment in 4500 vacant posts puts a lot at stake against the Reserved categories. Any further delay in intervening in the ongoing violations, as evidenced by the Deshbandhu College case, will lead to the further exclusion and large-scale marginalization of teachers from the SC, ST, OBC and PWD categories.