DUTA Press Release,11 Dec 2014

Seven senior professors of the History Department, Delhi University, have written to the Vice-Chancellor to express their apprehension that the ongoing process of appointments in the colleges are being manipulated to suit vested interests. In a letter dated 8 December 2014, the professors have raised the issue of subject-experts in the Selection Committee who are being repeated in every interview. Instead of sending, in turn, each professor named in the panel of subject-experts by the Academic Council (as is the norm), the VC has restricted his choice to three professors who are being sent to every college. Further, all three professors have their specialization in Ancient History while sound academic practice demands that subject-experts be chosen from different areas of specialization, i.e. Ancient, Medieval, Modern Indian, European and American History for which teachers with different specializations are appointed.

The seven professors have also accused the VC of repeatedly ignoring the current Head of Department, Prof. Upinder Singh, whose presence in the Selection Committee is a norm. Their letter indicates that transparency and fairness in the process of appointments has been compromised.

Such a letter corroborates the DUTA’s position that the ongoing process of appointments is being subjected to several kinds of manipulation.

---