SHILLONG, Oct 12: The NEHUSU on Tuesday said Vice Chancellor Prabha Shankar Shukla decided to institute an independent probe in an attempt to distract the attention of the people since he knows he is at the centre of the university’s crisis.
“The demand for constitution of an independent probe by the students has lapsed. The VC has missed the bus. Our priority now is his removal,” NEHUSU general secretary Toniho S Kharsati said.
Kharsati said the independent probe the VC is talking about is restricted to the Registrar and the Deputy Registrars.
“What about the illegalities committed by the VC? Who will probe his wrongdoings?” he asked.
“The VC now realises that he is the main target of the student bodies and the demand to remove the Registrar and Deputy Registrars is no longer our number one priority,” Kharsati said.
He made it clear that they will not accept the independent probe constituted by the VC.
He asserted that the classrooms will not open for the resumption of the normal classes until Prof Shukla resigns.
Kharsati said the VC is appealing to the students since he knows that he cannot enter the campus again until they call off their hunger strike. “We are firm about not allowing the VC to return to the university campus again,” he said.
Kharsati said the President of India appointed Prof Shukla as the VC to improve the overall functioning and ranking of the university. “But in these three years, he has done nothing apart from lowering the image of the university through illegal appointments,” he said.
On Tuesday, the North East Students’ Organisation (NESO) sought the intervention of Union Education Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan to resolve the NEHU crisis.
In a letter, NESO chairman Samuel B. Jyrwa drew Pradhan’s attention to the “total breakdown of administration” in NEHU due to the indefinite hunger strike by the university’s students under the banner of the NEHUSU and the NEHU unit of the Khasi Students’ Union.
He said the Prof Shukla has been “adamant to the woes and the appeals of the students, teachers, and non-teaching staff” since he took over as the VC of the university.
“Petitions after petitions were submitted to the VC by the NEHUSU but the VC is least concerned about addressing the issues plaguing the university,” Jyrwa he said.
After a discussion with the VC failed to yield any result, he said the NEHUSU and the NEHU unit of the KSU are compelled to resort to agitation since November 5, seeking the VC’s ouster and of other officials.
“Whereas classes are disrupted due to the non-cooperation of the students, teachers, and non-teaching staff, the health of the fasting students is also deteriorating day by day raising concern in the state regarding their well-being in the near future,” Jyrwa said.
Alluding to the “unethical appointments” made by the VC, he said they are deeply concerned by Prof Shukla’s decisions to appoint individuals who have already reached the age of superannuation, including the officer on special duty for the Director of College Development Council and the guest house in-charge.
The NESO chairman further observed that the VC has made the questionable decision to create and appoint an individual to the post of campus director for the Tura campus, a role that was established without any formal process or institutional justification.
The letter stated that another serious concern is the VC’s frequent and extended absence from the university.
It further alleged that before Prof Shukla’s, each campus of the NEHU had a Pro-Vice Chancellor who played an essential role in maintaining a smooth operation. However, despite repeated requests and efforts from the university community, the VC failed to take the necessary steps to appoint the Pro-VCs, further exacerbating the leadership vacuum within the institution.
“The continued failure to address these issues has led to a loss of confidence in his leadership, and it is imperative that urgent action is taken to restore the university’s reputation and ensure its future growth. Given these grave concerns, the NEHUSU strongly demands the immediate termination of Prof PS Shukla, Col (retired) Omkar Singh, Amit Gupta, and all other incompetent staff members whose actions have directly contributed to the deterioration of the university,” the NESO stated.
