The DUTA’s opposition to the ongoing interviews for filling up 73 permanent teaching positions at Deshbandhu College on Friday infuriated the college teachers’ association.
While the Delhi University Teachers’ Association claimed that the college is conducting interviews on the basis of a public advertisement, which is opposed to the government’s reservation policy, the college association accused the former of disrupting the selection process for three hours.
“Out of the 73 posts advertised, only nine are reserved for SC and four for ST categories. This amounts to only 12.3 per cent of posts reserved for Scheduled Castes, and 5.5 per cent for Scheduled Tribes, which fall far short of the mandated requirement of 15 per cent and 7.5 per cent respectively,” the teachers’ body said in a statement.
“Further, the two posts reserved for persons with disabilities have not been earmarked for specific subjects, which is in violation of the standing court order,” it said.
The college association, however, said the recruitment process has the university’s approval.
While slamming the DUTA leadership for holding up appointments, Ashwini Shankar of Deshbandhu College said, “Instead of working tirelessly for regularisation of teachers, she (DUTA president Nandita Narain) sought to perpetuate ad hocism in Delhi University and play havoc with the career of thousands.”
As per the directions of the Delhi High Court to fill up 4,500 teaching positions in the university, Shankar said the interviews for 13 teaching positions, six of them unreserved and seven reserved ones, were conducted by the Department of Chemistry on Friday.
DUTA said their intervention came after two other groups of the same college – Deshbandu College Teachers’ Welfare Association and the SC/ST Teachers’ Forum – approached them.
“Responding to the teachers’ appeal, a DUTA delegation went to the college today and tried to meet the principal. But the principal refused to meet the delegation,” said the teachers’ group, adding the reservation roster was not placed for approval before the staff council or the college governing body.
A complaint has been lodged with the SC/ST Commission, the group said.