Dyal Singh principal’s spy pen act not an ‘offence’

The college governing body (GB),which met on November 11 to decide on the matter,chose to merely slap the principal on the wrist. “Copies of the report was not even distributed to the members. The GB chose to tell the principal to refrain from indulging in such acts in the future,” said P K Parihar,president of the Dyal Singh (Morning) College Teachers’ Association.

The incident occurred on April 30,2009. During a heated staff council meeting,a teacher sitting next to the principal noticed that the pen in his pocket was not a writing instrument. “The principal was constantly adjusting its position in his pocket. He was also trying to provoke some teachers,” recalled a teacher. A group of teachers then confronted the principal and forcibly took the pen from him.

Bakshi had succeeded in capturing 26 minutes of the meeting on camera. He argued before the inquiry committee that he had done so without any malafide intention.

Both the principal and teachers referred to an ongoing case before the Delhi High Court as the immediate provocation for the act. “The principal had filed a case before the High Court,alleging that teachers were disrupting the functioning of the college. After he submitted the petition,the GB endorsed our position. He had to resort to manufacturing evidence,” said Parihar.

The teachers’ agitation,which was against the proposed acquisition of college land by the Delhi Metro. The principal had approached the court and obtained a temporary injunction against the agitation,which is still in force.

In his written defence,Bakshi has argued that the recording was to avoid “misrepresentation” and “false allegations” by the teachers; he also stated that every meeting should be captured on camera.

Justice Khurana,however,pointed out the difference between a live recording and a secret recording,and noted that the main objective of the principal was to create evidence in his favour.

Bakshi had also argued that he was following the spirit of the guidelines issued by the DCP (South),telling colleges to install CCTV cameras for security reasons. The inquiry report rubbished the claim.