Students seek UGC probe into ‘irregularities’ at varsity

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, June 24

Students of Doon University have written a letter to the University Grants Commission (UGC), accusing the university of indulging in irregularities.

They said Doon University’s irregularities include fraudulent recruitments, nepotism and flouting of norms by the purchase department.

“The university has only one regular faculty of professor rank and even that appointment is controversial. The teacher has been appointed under the ‘Uttarakhand Women’ category but prima facie documentary evidence shows that the faculty submitted a fraudulent certificate regarding her domicile. The university has acknowledged this fact but no explanation has been sought till date. A probe should be ordered and the faculty should be removed until the investigation is completed,” said Navneet Rajoria, one of the students who wrote to the UGC.

Students said there were several cases of such fraudulent recruitments. “In one such instance, the qualifying criteria and marks were purposefully manipulated to benefit a candidate,” said Mohit Pandey, another student of the university.

They also highlighted the case of the appointment of two teachers in the university’s economics department, which was cancelled on May 31, 2016, as they lacked the requisite qualification.

“The university has imposed draconian rules. It prohibits students from talking to the media, which is their right. They want to silence the voice of students,” the letter adds.

The students also sought the implementation of the Lyngdoh committee guidelines. Trumped-up charges are being levelled against students who have ever dared to question the state of affairs in the university, they said. An impartial investigation should be done into the functioning of Doon University, they added.

Repeated attempts to contact university officials failed to yield response.