JNUTA condemns varsity for 'relieving' professor against his

JNU Teachers Association today condemned and demanded an explanation from the varsity for allegedly "firing" a professor on lien without any intimation and "against" his will to be sent back to IIT - Kharagpur.
Professor Rajeev Kumar with IIT-Kharagpur was offered a position in School of Computer and Systems Sciences of JNU on lien for a period of two years on June 12, 2015.
However, in a letter he received on June 5, he was told that he would be sent back to IIT - Kharagpur upon the expiry of the lien period, JNUTA said in a release.
The teachers also demanded an explanation and said the grounds on which he was issued a relieving letter was against his will.

"Why did the JNU administration relieve (effectively, fire) Prof. Kumar without even informing him, asking for his consent, or at least issuing him a show cause notice?," JNUTA President Ayesha Kidwai said.
"Faculty in any institution are not bonded labour, and no person can be made to work at an institution against his will," she said.

"No proceedings have been initiated against the professor in JNU and it had clearly indicated in a letter that it wished to confirm him in 2016," JNUTA said sharing a confirmation letter.
On 8 June 2016, as soon as JNU confirmed him the post in the letter, Kumar submitted his resignation to IIT - Kharagpur and requested termination of the lien, according to the release.

The IIT, however, did not accept it and cited that a petition filed by Kumar against it "had not yet reached its logical conclusion". Prof. Kumar has approached the High Court of Delhi against the attempts to coerce him to rejoin IIT Kharagpur, the release said.