BHU VC, students hold several rounds of meetings in bid to end impasse

Banaras Hindu University (BHU) vice chancellor Rakesh Bhatnagar and agitating students held several rounds of meetings all through the day on Thursday in a bid to

Banaras Hindu University (BHU) vice chancellor Rakesh Bhatnagar and agitating students held several rounds of meetings all through the day on Thursday in a bid to end the impasse over the appointment of a Muslim as assistant professor in the department of sahitya at the Faculty of Sanskrit Vidya Dharma Vijnan.

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The students have been agitating since November 7, demanding the transfer of assistant professor Firoz Khan out of the faculty. The first round of talks was held at 1am and resulted in the faculty being reopened in the afternoon after having remained closed for a fortnight. However, classes did not resume.

Then, a delegation of agitating students met BHU vice chancellor Rakesh Bhatnagar at his residence on Thursday evening after he called them for discussions. BHU public relations officer Dr Rajesh Singh confirmed this meeting.

During the meeting, the VC asked the students to end their sit-in. The students, in turn, submitted a list of questions to the university administration. The students said they wanted a written assurance from the university administration for transferring Dr Firoz Khan out of the faculty.

In a statement, the university authorities said, “The BHU administration today held talks with the students who are protesting the appointment of an assistant professor in the sahitya department of the Faculty of Sanskrit Vidya Dharma Vigyan. Several rounds of talks were also held with the students on Wednesday after which the faculty reopened on Thursday and functioned smoothly.”

“The vice chancellor, dean, heads of departments, senior teachers and university officials were also present during the meeting today. The students have handed over a list of questions to the university administration and have sought answers to their questions. After written assurances by the chief proctor and the head of the department, to respond to the questions within ten days, the students said they would end their sit-in,” the statement said.

However, the students said they would continue their sit-in for now and decide on their strategy on Friday after discussing the matter among themselves. The students pointed out that they did not get immediate answers to their questions and were only assured that these would be answered in 10 days. A third round of meetings was underway when reports were last received.

The delegation which met the vice chancellor included research scholars Chakrapani Ojha, Shubham Tiwari and two others.