DUSU joint secretary allegedly slaps professor at BR Ambedkar College; teachers demand inquiry

A controversy erupted at Delhi University’s BR Ambedkar College on Thursday evening after Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) joint secretary, Deepika Jha, allegedly slapped a professor. The incident sparked outrage among teachers, prompting demands for a university-level inquiry.

According to the Delhi Teachers’ Forum (DTF), “The joint secretary slapped Prof Sujit Kumar, and several teachers were manhandled in BR Ambedkar College, DU.” The incident was reportedly captured on CCTV.

Prof Sujit Kumar, who serves as the Convenor of the Disciplinary Committee at BR Ambedkar College, was allegedly targeted because the committee was investigating recent cases of campus violence involving members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

“The DUSU president and joint secretary barged into the college today with over 50 students and teachers were manhandled. They asked for the convener’s resignation,” the DTF statement said.

Following the altercation, all members of the college’s Disciplinary Committee tendered their resignations, citing concerns over safety. The DTF condemned the incident, stating, “Teachers cannot function if they cannot be protected. We condemn this act in the strongest terms. We find it absurd that the police did not intervene effectively.”

Demanding immediate action, the forum added, “We demand a university-level inquiry on the matter and strict action against the student. The university cannot be lost to violence and mob culture.”

However, presenting her version of the events, Deepika Jha denied the allegations of unprovoked assault. She said, “That teacher was staring at me continuously for 15-20 minutes. When I told him twice not to look at me like that, he said, ‘I’m looking at you right now, and I’ll look at you outside as well.’ I felt bad and told him that this was not the right way to talk. I also tried to explain that he shouldn’t smoke on campus — his video had already gone viral while smoking — but instead of understanding, he misbehaved with me. He even said, ‘I have seen many like you; I know you very well.’ Despite all this, he is now running a false narrative that he was slapped, while no one is talking about how he misbehaved with a woman.”

The incident has divided opinion on campus, with teachers demanding accountability for the alleged assault, while ABVP members insist that the professor’s behaviour provoked the confrontation. The university administration has not yet issued an official statement.