MS University fracas: independent inquiry please

MS University, Baroda. This is an edited version of the letter.

Dear Prime Minister: We are writing to you to draw your attention to the recent incident at the MS University at Baroda. This is a matter of grave concern to the academic community, since it not only involved the violation of the freedom of expression granted by the Constitution to citizens, but is equally an assault on university autonomy. Members of a political party were permitted to enter the university, destroy the work submitted for examinations by a student of the arts faculty and have the student arrested by the police. When the dean intervened to protect the student, he was suspended by the vice-chancellor.

Soon after the incident, two of us wrote to President Kalam expressing our anxiety over what had happened and requested him to intervene if need be through the governor of Gujarat… We are not aware of any follow-up action that may have been initiated by the president.

Meanwhile, there have been a large numbers of protests at many universities across the country as also by Indian academics abroad, over this incident, in particular the action of the vice-chancellor of MS University. The vehemence of the protest is also a reflection of the feeling that such actions bring shame to the country as a whole.

We recognise that higher education is a state subject and the MS University Baroda is not a central university. Even so, we are writing to you because we believe that actions such as these are not confined to a single state. They can quite easily become a mechanism of curbing the pursuit of independent knowledge at a university. We are writing to you not only as the prime minister of India but also as a person who has been a distinguished academic and recognises the sanctity of university autonomy.

Furthermore, this is not an internal matter of the university, since it involves outside public intervention in the functions of the university. Therefore, in our view, an inquiry conducted internally by the university cannot suffice. A pre-condition of such an inquiry is that the dean be reinstated and the charges against the student be withdrawn, until such time as the inquiry has been completed.

We would request that either the governor in his capacity as chancellor of the University or the University Grants Commission be asked to set up an independent inquiry committee. Such a committee should not be constituted by the vice-chancellor, since his actions are being inquired into, nor should it be constituted by the state government. The committee should consist of academics from other universities and concerned citizens from other states.

We feel that this is particularly necessary to set the right kind of precedent. University functionaries… should not be allowed to behave in an authoritarian manner and should be reminded that there is a wider university community beyond the particular state and its government, to which they are accountable.

We sincerely hope and trust that you will take some action in this matter.